Freedom Writing: A Simple Take on Life

This Week

2011-08-11T18:46:00.000-05:00

I can describe this week in two words....

EXTRODINARILY EXHAUSTING.

O.M.G. I've worked 12-14 hrs per day, which is fewer hours than my husband has worked each day, but ~~this perfect-picture-of-domesticity isn't used to such labor (or hasn't been used to it since May)~~ I'm still tired.

I thought this cartoon was sad but true.

Even with the sort-of-grim message from the cartoon, I love, love, love my job and I'm so excited about this year and the group of 111 students that I get to see each day. If I don't post every day, every other day, or every three days, promise not to hate. I'll do the best I can. I want to keep you updated on my kiddos and what they are doing, though, so expect to hear from me about that.

This week in Mrs. Kirkland's Language Arts class:
1. Laying down the law (I didn't phrase it that way, but let's face it, that's what I've been politely doing.)
2. Friday my kids will get a letter from me. They will be writing one in response. They'll also be learning about effective ways to brainstorm and how to get your thoughts organized before you begin writing.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Congrats Kendra and Zach!

2011-08-04T18:07:00.000-05:00

Wooohoo! A few months ago, BK's good friend and co-worker, Zach, surprised his girlfriend Kendra at the airport with a "Will you marry me?" sign, and of course, she said yes. Over the past year, we have become really good friends with Kendra and Zach and have really enjoyed traveling with them, having cookouts, and in general, just spending time with them as a couple.

If you remember, in January of this year we took ~~the best trip ever~~ a very exciting trip out to Las Vegas and Phoenix for a little event called the BCS National Championship Game. We were lucky enough to have Kendra and Zach as traveling buds and Fogo de Chao dinner dates, among many other things (T-Will "concert", gambling buddies *jk mom*, and travel agents with BK was hospitalized). We had a blast with them and although the trip was awesome, it was so much better getting to share those memories with good friends.

Sometime in March, Kendra took a great job in Ohio Sate University's athletic dept. and moved to Columbus soon after, making their relationship a long-distance one. Can we sympathize with their situation? Oh. Yeah. We feel bad that they are having to do this long distance, but we know from experience that long distance relationships make you so much closer as a couple if you trust in God and His plan. They too, are praying and trusting that God's plan is greater than ours.

BK and I have been asked to be in their wedding, which is in Columbus, OH on June 9, 2012. We are so excited to be celebrating with them and so honored to call them our good friends! Congratulations Kendra and Zach! We love ya'll!

Vacation Recap 2011

2011-07-29T10:23:00.000-05:00

BK and I just spent 12 days on vacation, and let me tell you how relaxing those 12 days were! WOW! We spent a week on the beautiful beaches of Ft. Walton Beach, FL. where the sand is bright white and most of the time, the water is clear. I honestly believe the Gulf Coast has the most beautiful beaches in our country, so if you've never been there, make a point to go- you won't regret it!

During that week we played volleyball, snorkeled, walked on the beach, and (most importantly to BK) ate a TON of fresh Gulf seafood. It was a great week spent with my parents, my Mamaw, my brothers, and one of their girlfriends and the other's best friend. I couldn't have asked for a better time with some of the people that I love the most.

After that week, we drove over to Mobile, AL. to spend the weekend with BK's family. We stayed with his Memaw, who is the epitome of a strong Southern lady. Whenever we stay with her, she always cooks every meal and this time was no exception. Traditional southern meals were a nice break from the week's worth of seafood we consumed the week before. It did nothing, however, for the diet and exercise regiment I had been working on over the past five months. Oh well...it's vacation, right?! While in Mobile, we also had the chance to an art show that BK's dad had entered a piece in. If you aren't aware, his dad is quite a talented painter and his pieces are amazing. For a wedding gift, he painted a beautiful watercolor print of a picture that we took the weekend we got engaged in Vail, CO in 2007. He's also given BK several Auburn prints that we will hang in the office of our next house. You should visit his website here. Although the most recent painting isn't on the website yet, he does have some very impressive prints.

On Monday of this past week we drove to Gulf Shores, AL. to spend a few days with our good friends J & E, who are getting married in December. Although we were only there a few days, we had a very laid back time, laying on the beach, playing in the ocean, riding go carts, and again, EATING: Tacky Jacks, Lulu's, Scoops, and the Oyster House. It was awesome.

Speaking of Lulu's, I had a truly "Southern" experience there at dinner and I'm already mulling over a fantastic blog for tomorrow...stay tuned.

P.S.....I go back to work one week from today. Boo-hiss!

God's gift to Atlanta...literally.

2011-07-11T14:47:00.000-05:00

Sunday, BK and I drove the hour and a half or so to Atlanta to check out Louie Giglio's Passion City Church. Let me give you some background on why we were so excited about this little trip.

Giglio is the founder of the Passion Movement, a conference that began in 1999 and has grown to a giant gathering of high school seniors and college students that will blow your mind. The conference was only in Atlanta until a few years ago, when Giglio decided to take the conference to the road, literally. Passion went to Boston, Denver, Chicago, Dallas, and then they went global. Over the course of a few months, Passion visited six continents and changed countless lives. During the conference, you're likely to hear speakers/pastors like Giglio, John Piper, and Frances Chan and hear music from the world's best praise and worship leaders like Chris Tomlin (who also leads worship at PCC), Christy Nockles, and Matt Redman. The conference is amazing, to say the least.

Back to PCC in Atlanta. Giglio is the pastor and Chris Tomlin is the worship leader. How awesome is that? When we were there yesterday, however, they had a special group lead worship and it was none other than Matt Redman. He's one of the greatest songwriters and worship leaders in the world and it was amazing to get to hear him roll out his new album, "10,000 Reasons". The album title comes from track 4 "10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord)". I want to share the lyrics with you because they have been on my mind constantly since yesterday.

Bless the Lord O my soul, O my soul,
Worship His Holy name.
Sing like never before, O my soul,
I'll worship Your Holy name.
The sun comes up, it's a new day dawning.
It's time to sing Your song again.
Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me,
Let me be singing when the evening comes.

This is only a small snippet of the song that I think you should check out.

(I know that I'm spending a lot of time telling you what to do, but there's one more thing.) I think you should also go to Passion City's website and listen to Giglio's sermons for the summer. He's focusing on a chapter study of the Gospel of John and I highly recommend it.

Click HERE for the link to PCC's website and a way to download Giglio's sermons. Oh how I wish that Auburn had a Passion City Church!

Insomnia and the products thereof

2011-07-08T13:28:00.000-05:00

I suffer from insomnia and find myself lying in bed ~~next to a dead asleep human who wakes if I even think about moving~~ solving all the world's problems and writing imaginary letters to different people. Weird, I know. However, a brain full of words never stops thinking. So last night while tossing and turning, I wrote a little letter to the one and only Nelle Harper Lee.

She's only written one novel, and as you may have noticed, I sort of like it. Everyone has some token or piece of memorabilia that they would almost kill for. If you ask my husband, he wants a signed Derek Jeter game bat (only valued at $3,500).

My "Derek Jeter bat" isn't something that most people would want, but it's something that I can't imagine being lucky enough to own. I would love to have a first edition signed copy of TKAM. I would put it in a special place in my house and look at it every day....literally.

The cost of this fine piece of literary history.....a mere $24,500. Take that, Derek Jeter. I still want it, but know that I'll be doing good just to get a signed copy at all, which brings me back to the letter.

See, I want to write to Ms. Lee and tell her, as I'm sure many others have done, about how she has changed my life, quite literally. Her novel has changed the way I interact with people, and how I teach the 100 or so students I encounter every day. Think about it, how amazing to know that because you have a gift for writing and because you chose to put your gift to use, a countless number of lives were changed or affected. Her novel brought the intolerant South's views into perspective in 1960. She forced people from the South to confront their own attitudes. It would be my dream to do the same in some way. Isn't that what every writer wants- to impact lives and change people?

I want to ask her so many questions about the creation of Mockingbird. I want to know if she modeled Scout after herself and if it's true that Capote was the inspiration for Dill's character. I want to get her take on how her upbringing in Monroeville inspired the setting. Who was the inspiration for Boo and did she have a Calpurnia in her life? I'd like to mail her a copy of Mockingbird in the hopes that she would sign and return it. My dream is to talk to her in person over a glass of sweet tea or lemonade, but the likelihood of her even answering a letter is like a shot at the moon.

Having said all this, I'll be posting my letter to Ms. Nelle Harper Lee in the future. Until then, I'm going to scour the Internet for her mailing address...yeah right. If any of you have insight as to how to get in touch with her, pass it on.

I'm crazy, I know. Just let me dream :)

A Nation in Trouble

2011-07-07T17:27:00.000-05:00

Look around you next time you're in a public place like a mall. What is it that you'll see? An overweight nation.

Msn.com released an article with some alarming statistics. "The report, released Thursday, also found that more than 30 percent of the people in 12 states are obese. Four years ago, only one state could make that claim." You can go here to read this very informative article.

30%....wow. Just to make this a reality, 30 of 100 people are obese. Not overweight, but obese.
The article also lists the states by percentages of obese adults. This doesn't include overweight adults, just obese.

Even more alarming is this statement, "Twenty years ago, "there wasn't a single state that had an obesity rate above 15 percent, and now every state is above that," said Jeff Levi, executive director of Trust for America's Health, which compiled the report."

Want to know where Alabama ranks? 2nd...and that's not a place where you want to be at the top of the list. In our great state, 32.3% of adults are obese. Only Mississippi has a higher percentage.

What is the significance of those two quotes you might ask? That means that in my lifetime, our country has gotten itself in a serious problem. Many people, women especially, see obesity as something that just affects their looks. However, there's so much more at stake than the way that you look.

Obesity poses so many health issues including heart problems, diabetes, and an increased risk of bone and joint problems. You should be wary because it is so dangerous to allow yourself to be at an increased risk of such major problems. I honestly believe that obesity is a large contributing factor in why health care costs in our country are at an all time high.

I'm not saying that everyone should be tiny, but I think that being aware of what you are eating and drinking, along with getting some form of regular exercise is part of being a responsible person. You are not only helping yourself become healthier in both mind and body, but you are helping to take care of your family by increasing your chances of living a longer, healthier life.

I do not write this blog to point fingers, make anyone uncomfortable, or to cast blame. However, I know that my body type is such that if I did nothing in the realm of exercise and nutrition, I will be a contributor to these obesity statistics.

Having said all this, I encourage you, reader, to be aware of what sorts of foods you are consuming and highly consider beginning some exercise regiment, even if it is walking or jogging for a short period of time. BK and I are about 40 days into P90X, an extreme exercise program. Along with this, we have changed our diet to be a much healthier and well-rounded. Now this doesn't mean that we eat healthy all the time- we still splurge on occasion, but overall we cook at home and our meals are pretty healthy.

I don't know a whole lot, but if you would like to talk about what nutrition options we have been doing and how you can make some changes in a short period of time, please email me. I hope you will consider these statistics and make whatever changes are necessary in your own life to be a healthier you.

This has nothing to do with your waist size, it's about being healthy and happy. As the workout guy on P90X says, "Do your best and forget the rest."

Goin' to The Big House

2011-07-05T16:12:00.000-05:00

Although we're huge Auburn fans ~~because we've spent roughly $150,000 on our educations combined~~, the hubs has always loved the University of Michigan football team. I think he started liking them as a kid because he liked their colors on tv. His love hasn't stopped and he's always wanted to go to their stadium, The Big House, in Ann Arbor to see a game.

There's been a few problems in getting there:
1. He's on the grounds crew at AU and everyone pitches in and gets the football field ready every Saturday that there is a home game.
2. It's REALLY expensive to get tickets to a UM game because they sell out regularly.
3. It's silly to spend so much money on a weekend when we have to pay for flights, hotel, tickets, etc.

Welp, we've found solutions to all of these problems and on this year for his birthday (sort of), we're going to Michigan to see his team!

When BK did his internship with the Red Sox in 2006, he made a friend (also an intern) named Jason Demink. Fast forward five years and BK works for Auburn baseball, and Demink works for Michigan baseball/softball. Demink offered us tickets for this year's Michigan vs. Notre Dame game, which will also be the first night game in Michigan history. Our gracious friends have also offered us a place to stay for the weekend, which is awesome! Knowing that this opportunity may not come around again, BK will be taking off work the weekend of the AU vs MSU game Sept. 10....oh well!

When I found out that we were going, I started stalking airline tickets ~~because I love to plan trips~~ because in order to get the best deal, you've got to be diligent about watching prices. For whatever reason, prices on sites like Expedia are usually the lowest Tuesday or Thursday nights at about 10pm. However, sometimes if you watch on these days early in the day, you might get lucky. I did.

Atlanta is the closest airport to us- only about an hour and fifteen minutes. Luckily, the cost of tickets from Atlanta is much lower than tickets from Birmingham. I stalked the tickets for a few months because the prices from Atlanta to Detroit had been around $300 a ticket. Through my diligence, I was able to snag the same tickets for $179 each! I'm telling ya people, don't buy airline tickets without stalking them for at least a month or more first. We wouldn't go on most of the trips we go on if we bought tickets at full price or didn't get deals on hotels.

Happy ~~very~~ early birthday, BK, and Go Blue!

Love Life

2011-07-03T17:27:00.000-05:00

If reading a sort-of-sappy story makes you sick, you may want to ~~stop reading~~ join me again another day :) FYI: This post will contain valuable information and insight on a great book, though. You may want to keep reading, just saying.

When BK and I were engaged, he was living in Denver and I was living in Birmingham; it was a VERY long distance relationship. We had been dating about six months when he moved, and it only took three months of long distance dating before he asked me to be his bride. During our engagement, it was recommended that we read Dr. Ed Wheat's book Love Life for Every Married Couple. We both got a copy and began reading. We would read chapters and then discuss them over the phone. I honestly believe that reading this book before marriage was one of the best things we could have done for the health of our relationship. It.Was.Awesome.

Four years later, we decided to revisit the book and see what we could get from a second read. Although we feel like we have a strong friendship and marriage, it can never hurt to improve any relationship you have in your life; after all, no relationship is perfect.

I was reading today while I sat on my back porch during a torrential downpour (we have a tin roof on the back deck and it's my favorite place to be during a rainstorm), and I would like to share a bit of what I read today, as it has the potential to transform your relationship if put into practice.

Genesis 2:24 says, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh."

Wheat gives us insight on the word cleave. He says that cleave means, "to adhere, to stick, to be attached by strong tie" (29). Upon further investigation, BK found that cleave also means "to remain faithful." Cleave is an action verb. Now, if we were in my 7th grade classroom, I would tell you that this type of verb requires you to do something. You can't cleave by sitting on your rump and wishing for something to happen. Cleaving requires the doer to take action and take initiative.

Everybody hears this verse and thinks that it's main message is that you move out of your parents' house when you get married and bam! things are peachy keen. Not so, my friend. I think the main purpose of this verse lies in the cleaving and not necessarily in the leaving. Wheat later states that "in the eyes of God, cleaving means wholehearted commitment, first of all spiritual, but spilling over into every area of our being, so that the cleaving is also intellectual, emotional, and physical" (31).

Have you thought about cleaving being intellectual? It's a choice, a conscious choice that each partner must make each day. Without cleaving, without adhering to your partner, your relationship has no choice but to be distanced. If you aren't actively pursuing your partner intellectually, emotionally, physically, and spiritually, what are you doing to ensure that your relationship stays solid? Nothing. Despite what we believed or thought about love as teenagers, love isn't an emotion that comes and goes. Loving your partner is a conscious choice that must be made every day. While cleaving sounds like a fairly simple thing to do, it doesn't come naturally to any of us because our human nature is to think about our individual needs first. Cleaving requires each person to set their own needs aside and focus instead on the needs of their partner. It makes perfect sense, really! If I focus on BK's needs and cleaving to him and he does the same for me, both of our needs will be met as God intended it.

The result of this conscious choice- the "thrill factor", as Wheat puts it (86). Please know that fireworks don't go off in my house every single day, but they do happen quite frequently because my mate and I choose daily to cleave to one another. This "thrill factor" comes in various shapes and sizes, but some of the physical responses of the thrill factor are "quickened breathing and a fast-beating heart". I cannot help but think back to what BK and I lovingly refer to as the "arriving at the airport feeling" (a stark contrast to the "leaving Denver feeling"). See, while we were dating/engaged long distance I would fly out to Denver once every 7-10 weeks. For those of you who have experienced something like this, you know exactly what feeling I'm talking about. There has been no greater feeling of excitement/anticipation/absolute happiness than getting off that plane, riding the shuttle train, going up the escalator, and seeing that smiling face that you haven't seen in so long. The airport feeling is one of a kind and it's definately something akin to the "thrill factor" that Wheat speaks of. You know that you have a genuine and wholehearted love when you're overcome with this feeling so often after five years (or more for a lot of you) of loving your partner.

I just want to encourage you, reader, if you're in a serious dating relationship, engaged, or married, check out this great book. It's a quick and easy read and the benefits of reading this book with your partner, no matter how many years you've been together, are numerous. Although relatively inexperienced in the realm of married couples, we do believe that investing in our marriage together spriritually is the only way to avoid being part of the 50%> of marriages that fail. If you know either or both of us, you know we're two of the most stubborn people you've ever met. We refuse to fail, and we choose daily to cleave to one another.

Thanks for listening to my rant today :) I'll leave you with a Denver picture taken the day after Christmas 2007.

"Daddy, okay!"

2011-07-01T13:32:00.000-05:00

My dad tells me that the little girl on this commercial reminds him of me when I was her age....

"Daddy, okay!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qf8OGLqE1s

Thought this would bring a smile to your face, Dad. Love you!

Happy Birthday, Ty!

2011-07-01T08:36:00.000-05:00

HAPPY 23rd Birthday, middle child!

In case you didn't know, I have two younger brothers, pictured at right in 2005. Ty is two and a half years younger than me, and Tucker is almost 10 years younger. Our birthdays all have something in common- we were all born on the 1st day of the month. Ty is July 1, Tucker is August 1, and I am November 1. None of us were C-section babies or induced, so it's funny that it just worked out that way. Unfortunately, BK and I can't be there to celebrate in the middle child's birthday, but my understanding is that Ty's boss gives each employee their birthday off, and with Monday being July4, Ty will get a four day weekend. I don't think he'll have a problem celebrating with or without us :)

In honor of Ty's birthday, I've found some interesting statistics from way back when in 1988. Some of the following information is disturbing, seeing as how the prices of things has inflated in a preposterous way. Reader, beware.

Average cost of a new house: $91, 600.00
Average cost of a new car: $10, 400.00
Average yearly income: $24,450.00
1 gallon of gas:$.91
Movie Ticket: $3.50
1 dozen eggs: $.65
US postage stamp: $.24

Now for some popular culture....
- Crack first appears in the US and (obviously) becomes increasingly popular
- Popular Movies: Rain Man, Die Hard, Crocodile Dundee II
- Popular Music: U2, The Beach Boys, Guns N Roses, Michael Jackson, Gloria Estefan

I thought some of this was interesting, some disturbing, and some just downright funny.

Anyway, I hope that you have a great day today and that this year is the best you've had yet. I love you and I'm so proud of everything that you've accomplished!

Taylor Swift! and the rest of summer plans

2011-06-30T20:23:00.000-05:00

I can't wait to see Miss Swift in Atlanta July 10! No, I'm not dragging poor BK to see this girly show. Instead, it's going to be a girl's weekend in the ATL.

My little cousing Saulye, who was the flower girl in our wedding, is totally enthralled with Taylor. She LOVES her. The child got a hot pink guitar last Christmas because that's what Taylor has. I was very excited when my mom said to me earlier in the year that she was thinking about taking Saulye to see Taylor Swift in concert for her birthday. Of course, I volunteered to chaperon the trip :)

Saulye's birthday was in May and mom surprised her with her first concert ticket. Anyway, me, mom, Saulye, and her mom (dad's sis are going to be spending two nights in ATL to do some shopping, dining, and of course, go to the concert. Needless to say, I think I'm as excited as Saulye. Stay tuned in the next few weeks for what I'm sure will be a picture/story packed blog about this fun weekend.

In other news...I took the month of June off to do absolutely nothing. When I say nothing, I mean it. The only productive thing I have done this month is exercise 6 days a week (thank you P90X), visit the pool a few times, and read some books. I don't feel one bit bad about this, either. This is my first summer off since I finished my undergrad, really.

July, however, is another story. Don't get me wrong, I'm not really "working", so don't feel too bad for me. I have to do actual work at the school for about 5-6 days and I also will work from home and the library as I start preparing my lessons for next year. July is just busy, but in a good way. I'll be doing that school work at the beginning of the month, going to see Miss Swift on 7/10, visit the dreaded dentist that week, and go back to work for three more days of Alabama Reading Initiative training. In the middle of July, most of my family (Mamaw, me, BK, Mom, Dad, Ty and gf Carson, and Tucker) will ALL be staying for a week in Ft. Walton Beach. CANNOT WAIT doesn't even describe how BK and I feel about this trip. So excited :) We will leave FWB on Saturday to go to Mobile to see BK's family, then back to Gulf Shores with our BFFs and newly engaged couple John and Emily. Yes, 9 days at the beach...I know! This has never happened for me before...ahhh!

We'll come back from our vacay to hit the real world square in the face. I have to go back to actual work Aug 5 and the kiddos come back Wednesday, Aug 10.

Stay tuned for a happy birthday post tomorrow! The middle child in the fam turns 23, which means I'm officially getting old. How bad am I going to feel when Tucker turns 23....that means I'll be 33. Crap.

Why you should read TKAM (as if you needed a reason, really)

2011-06-29T17:31:00.001-05:00

TKAM: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Defined simply: The best book ever written. Period.

If you are a fan of the great literary cannon, then you will disagree with me, but I don't really care. Let's just be honest, you don't read TKAM because it's one of the "classics". Do most of the average Joes read the classics? No. Should they? Maybe. I'm a fan, but I've also been forced to read them and I fell in love with them that way. On the other hand, TKAM should be in the category of greatest books ever written. (Hold this thought for a few minutes, because we're coming back to it.)Here's why I think so, and also what prompted me to write this.

I had a "working lunch" with four of my fellow colleagues that teach 7th Language Arts at Drake to discuss the upcoming year and how we will tackle our AL course of study and the other objectives/materials that we will teach. We have two days of curriculum design coming up next week, so this was the precursory meeting. We decided that middle schoolers are very awkward and it is this year in a young person's life that can be a major turning point for them personally. In 8th grade, all students in our system move to Auburn Junior High for two years, then on to Auburn High for grades 10-12. Case in point, the little people I encounter are in for BIG changes in the next few years.
In case you haven't been around 12-13 year olds in a while, they change DRASTICALLY in 7th grade. As a department, we wanted to design our curriculum and lessons around helping our students to embrace these changes and help them figure out what type of person they will become as they get older. Our over-arching theme this year will be "Self Discovery", and we will teach smaller thematic units during each of the four quarters. We will be teaching ELA concepts through the following lenses: Identity, Tolerance, Community, and Culture.

I'm personally most excited about tolerance. Here's why...

Tolerance is something that our world, country, state, communities, and citizens have a hard time with. I'm not just talking about racism, either. We don't like what's different than us, as if "us" is somehow the norm, whatever that means. Ask yourself, what is actually normal? Can you define normal? 7th graders have an especially hard time being accepting of others who are not like themselves. There is quite a bit of bullying and picking on that takes place in middle, junior high, and high schools all over our country and frankly, it's very sad and disturbing.

(Refer back to the TKAM discussion from earlier) If you haven't read TKAM, it's narrated by this 6 year old girl , Jean Louise "Scout" Finch, who's from Maycomb, Alabama. Her father, Atticus, is a lawyer who defends an African American man accused of raping a white girl. Keep in mind this book is set in 1932. Mmmmk. Throughout the book, Scout, who is really not prejudice, learns why it is such a big deal that an African American is being charged with this crime. Atticus gives Scout and her brother Jim pellet guns for their birthdays. He tells Scout that she can shoot any animal in their backyard except for mockingbirds. When she asks why, he tells her that mockingbirds don't do anything but sing their songs- their innocence is something you shouldn't mess with. After Atticus proves his client's innocence, the reader realizes the symbolism of the title. Never, ever kill the innocent mockingbird because they don't cause any harm to anyone or anything. The book portrays the racist south and the intolerant attitudes of the people of Maycomb. Through the eyes of a 6 year old, readers are confronted with their own views of tolerance as they see grown adults acting so foolishly.

Atticus says to Scout at one point in the book, "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view- until you climb in his skin and walk around for a while." WOW. This, my friends, is why I am in love with this book, and this is why I cannot wait to teach my students about tolerance of all kinds. Unfortunately, and much to my dismay, I can't teach TKAM, as neither the language nor some of the situations are appropriate for "young minds", and 9th grade teaches it. Boo-hiss.

If you haven't read this book, or don't remember it, please go check it out of your library. It's amazing and a great read. I can't wait to teach my kids these concepts and hopefully be able to shape or reshape their thinking. If we don't teach it in school, and obviously some of them aren't getting it at home, where will they learn it?

This meeting fired me up for the coming year. How do I know? I've been in the library for three hours working on the pacing guide and literature that will accompany our thematic units. It's amazing the differences between first and second year of teaching. I'm so much more confident in my abilities this year and am excited about the changes that I'm going to make to my lessons. Yay for 7th grade! I'm going to read TKAM now.... :)

Things I've Learned

2011-06-28T14:25:00.000-05:00

I have learned so much about myself in the past few years that it's amazing, really. I thought I would truly "know who I was" by the time I completed college, but I was wrong. In college I definitely figured out who I wasn't and who I didn't want to be (everyone learns from their mistakes, right?). Since I completed my undergrad in 2007, I feel like a butterfly that's shed its cocoon. I've been doing a good bit of soul searching lately and here are some things I've learned about myself:

1. I'm pretty selfish. Even as I write that sentence, I am mortified and embarrassed, but it's true. There are some of you reading this who are laughing because you've known this for so long and who have been hurt by my selfishness, and for that, I am truly so sorry. Being married to a very selfless person has made me acutely aware of how "me" centered my life is. Through some Bible study recently, I've learned just how dangerous, unhealthy, and detrimental my selfishness can be. God tells us to "love the Lord with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind". How on Earth can I possibly love the Lord with ALL my heart, soul, and mind if all I think about is myself and things that affect me?!? It's impossible. Instead of having a me-mindset, I have to change my focus to look to Him. When I or you or whoever finally focuses on Him, all other things will fall into place.

2. I'm career oriented. I NEVER, NEVER thought I would ever write that sentence. I thought, like a lot of other girls in their teens and early 20's, that I would go to school for a B.A. or B.S., get a job, find a great husband, have a baby two years later, and be a stay at home mom. Please, reader, hear me when I tell you that I think that staying at home with children is one of the most selfless and one of the more difficult things that women can do. My mom was a stay at home mom when we were growing up and I will forever be thankful for the time she spent with us and the selflessness she and my dad displayed by raising us that way. This is not a feminist ploy- I NEVER thought I would feel this way. BK and I married three years ago and knew from the beginning that we wanted to wait a while before we added little one. Three years into it, most all of our married friends have at least one child, and most have baby #2 on the way. We're so happy for them! But, we know that the Lord hasn't put it on our hearts to have kids yet, and we're enjoying coming and going whenever we want and it being just the two of us. I want to go back to school for my Ph.D or Ed.D. very soon and I want to continue working after we have kids to further my career.

3. I don't like denominations. A Christian is a Christian is a Christian. If we believe that Christ is God's son born of a virgin, who came to Earth, spread His good word, died on a cross to forgive the world's sins, and rose from the grave three days later fulfilling the scriptures, what else really matters? Does it matter that your a Methodist and he's a Baptist, or Pentecostal, or non-denominational? My students, who I refer to as my kids, would always ask me what denomination I am. I always replied with the fact that I am a believer and follower of Christ, but I go to a Baptist church. However, I stressed to them that I didn't think that denomination was important- the fact that a person believes that Jesus is their risen Savior is what is important. I'm so thankful that I teach in a public school where my students are curious about what I believe and ask me so that I can share it with them.

4. I love to cook! I this may seem really silly, considering how "serious" the previous three points have been, but it's definitely true. I don't just like cooking other people's recipes, I love to take several recipes and change them or combine them to make something yummy. After a long or stressful day, there's no better therapy for me than to come home and cook or bake. BK knows that if I've had a bad day, clear out of the kitchen until dinner is finished!

5. My mom is my best friend- for real. We talk pretty much every day. If not every day, then every other day for sure. I'm so thankful for her love, support, and encouragement every day of my life. No matter what happens in my life, I know that my parents will be there for me through everything, good and bad.

6. I ruined some really great relationships in the past. I can't change what has happened, but I can apologize and do my best to be the friend that people deserve. If you've been on the receiving end of my mistakes, I'm sorry and I hope that you will or have forgiven me. Recently, I went through this process with one of my oldest childhood friendships. Let me tell you, if you are considering taking the scary step of apologizing and hoping you'll be forgiven, do it! I apologized and was forgiven and now a friendship has been renewed. I am so thankful!

Obviously I've learned more than six things about myself over the past few years, but I've been typing for an hour and I'm done for now. I'd love to hear what you've learned about yourself, too!

Ooopppsss

2011-06-27T08:56:00.000-05:00

Let me reintroduce myself. My name is Allison, and I'm officially the worst blogger ever. It's only been two years, haha. Oh well. Let me tell you what's been going on.

June 14 of this year was our 3rd anniversary...yes, 3rd. Someone please tell me where did those three years go? We've done quite a bit since my last post two years ago. The last time we spoke, I was just beginning the arduous task of graduate school. I am SO happy to tell you that I graduated on August 9, 2010, with a master's in education. The next day I started teaching 7th grade at Auburn's middle school, Drake Middle. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my job. I mean, there are times when the awkward and hormonal middle schoolers drive me crazy, but they are a fun and exciting group. I teach about 100-115 students a day- that breaks down to five class periods with between 18-25 students per class period. Not only do I love the students that I teach, but my coworkers are awesome. At Drake, we are on "teams". Let me explain...on each team, you will have a science, social studies, and language arts teacher who work together and teach the same group of 100-115 students. We are on teams because Drake is so large- we house about 1,200 6th and 7th grade sctudents. When the students are teamed, they are able to build relationships with a smaller group of students and teachers. Teaming was something I had never heard of, but I have to say that it's the best idea for middle school students. I love the coworkers on my team. Last year, I became bffs with EP, the science teacher. At first, I didn't know if we would get along because I thought we were so different. After a few days of school, I realized that we were pretty much the same person, just teaching a different content area. Needless to say, we were inseperable last year. Our students called me Mrs. P and called her Mrs. K half of the time. We learned to answer to either name :) EP and I ate lunch together, discussed the intracasies of parent-teacher conferences numerous times, and even hit the gym together after work. I say all this to tell you that EP isn't coming back to Drake next year, which makes me BEYOND sad. She took a great job with AU and I'm so happy for her, but selfishly sad for me because she made my first year so great!

Anyway, we also did some remodeling and aesthetic work on the old homestead. Please refer to the previous post to see what the outside of our house looked like last year. Ok, good. Here's an updated picture of the house after we had new siding and windows installed.

SOOOOOO much better, right?! We love the changes that the siding made to the look of the house.

Well, I have a lot more to talk about, but I need to save some things to talk about on the next post. I'm glad to be back!

HOUSE!

2009-04-11T09:13:00.000-05:00

Ok, we close on our house this coming Tuesday, April 14, on our 10 month anniversary. I can't believe we've been married almost a year. Anyways, I went to the house this past week to do the "walk through" to make sure everything was good to go. I am going to post more pics of the inside when we get things moved in and settled, but I just wanted to post a picture of the front of the house for now.

*This is for you, Chris!

Grad School!

2009-01-06T21:34:00.000-06:00

...is consuming my entire life. Maybe I'll be able to post again once I graduate....in a year and a half. :) Here's a look at my stack of books for this semester.

Praise God!

2008-12-08T21:19:00.000-06:00

After 5 weeks of stress and anxiety, I found out today that I have been accepted into Auburn's Masters of Education program for January! This is something that we've been praying could happen, and the Lord has really opened the doors for me. So, I'll start the graduate program in January and it is a 40+ hr degree course. I should finish in May 2010. It seems like a long way away, but it's only two years and it will be well worth the effort in the end. Anyways, we're both very excited (me especially) and I can't wait until Jan 5! (I never thought I would be this excited about going back to school!) Please pray that we will be able to manage everything this Spring. Baseball season starts at the end of February and Bradley works a good bit from then until the end of May. Just pray that we will have good time management skills, as well as the financial ability to pay for school without taking out loans. We need Him to provide in a way that only He can do. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers! These past six months have been the best of our lives!

Family Picture

2008-12-07T20:44:00.000-06:00

Here's our first Christmas picture of our newly expanded family :)

Christmas Time!

2008-12-01T20:33:00.000-06:00

It's our favorite time of year and we have officially started decorating and getting all the things that are neccessary to make the holiday season festive. Your first Christmas as "grown ups" is a shock--we both have grown up and our parents had everything imaginable to decorate with. I mean, you never think about getting garland for your stairs and you go to look and....garland is a little expensive! It's neat this year because it is our first Christmas together. (Last year was supposed to be, but thank you United Airlines for cancelling that Christmas Day flight I booked!) So, we went to various stores and raided the Holiday sections. We are now fully equipped with cinnamon candles, wreath, a Christmas tree, snowman door mat, various Santa Clauses and snowmen, smell good pinecones, along with various other decorative items. Anyways, here are a few pictures of some of our handywork. Merry Christmas!

One of our stocking holders on the entertainment center.

Snowmen and Santa Claus

I got caught taking a break on the couch for a while.

Figures and candles on one of the end tables.

Our first tree :)

A Day on the Job

2008-10-11T09:43:00.001-05:00

Here are a few pictures from work. This past Friday, Aubie and some of the Auburn Cheerleaders came to visit us at school. They were all so excited and so cute!

Shoulder

2008-08-19T16:11:00.000-05:00

Well, if you have known me for any lengthy period of time, you know that I am a relatively healthy person. However, my great affliction in life is a bummed right shoulder. I don't know why it's awful, other than the 12 years of softball. Anyway, I've had it seen about it before but I decided to have it seen about again since Bradley got me in to see some really great doctors. So, I saw Dr. Goodlet (the AU team doctor) two weeks ago and began a stretching routine and took some anti-inflammitory pills that were supposed to reduce inflamation and pain in the joint. Well, it didn't work. Today, I had an MRI to try and see what is wrong. I had contrast put in the joint via injection....not so fun. Tomorrow evening I have an appointment with Dr. Andrews. Yes, THE Dr. Andrews. He's like the sports medicine guru of the world and I am so lucky to have his opinion. Hopefully tomorrow we should find out some info about what is going on in my little shoulder there. Whatever the course of treatment, I just want it fixed so that it doesn't bother me anymore. I'll update the blog when I know something more.

2008-08-13T16:45:00.000-05:00

Hello All! It's been a while...trust me, I know. My husband reminds me that I am not very good at updating this thing. So, I had a few minutes and figured this would be a good time to do this. This is week #2 as a preschool teacher and I've learned a lot. I've not learned so much about how to do my job because I already was pretty comfortable with that (Thank you Auburn University). However, what I have learned is far more comical and valuable, believe it or not. I have learned two things: 1. Some people really should be tested for things such as common sense and basic human values before they are allowed to reproduce. 2. I have learned how NOT to raise the future little one. And by "future little one", I mean the F.L.O. that is no where in the near future. Be patient people. Here's my pet peeve, or at least one of them. You bring your kiddo to preschool and I'm not sure what you really expect us to do with them sometimes. I mean, these people are paying upwards of $150 a week to send their kids here and these little brats won't mind, at ALL. For instance, "It's time for snack. Can you please go and wash your hands Rufus?" "NO!", screams little Rufus. I mean, I can't spank him (wich is what should definately happen) and all I can do is make him sit in time out, which is pretty much useless when he spends, on average, 15 mins per hour there. So, I send a note home to Rufus' parents telling him that we are having "behavioral problems" and that Rufus seems to have a problem obeying. The note goes absolutely unheeded by said parents. So, pray for me this year. They aren't my kids and I'm trying to be the best positive influence that I can be. I just wish that all kids had parents who cared about their behavior. These kids, who are outright defiant, are the future delinquints of the streets in Opelika. I'm writing down their names in case I see it in big bold letters on the front page of the O-A News in the next 15 years. Wouldn't suprise me with a couple of them, haha. Needless to say, I have new insights on do's and don'ts when the time comes for us to raise a little one. I've been teasing people that this job is great birth control :) Don't want kids--Become a pre-school teacher for a while :)

JOB!

2008-07-25T11:17:00.000-05:00

After a LONG wait, numerous interviews, and a ton of prayer, the Lord has answered our prayers and given me a great job! For the next year, I'll be teaching the Pre-K 4 yr old class at Creative Discovery Child Development Center. I'm so excited and can't wait to start on Aug 2. Just wanted to update everyone on what's going on with us :)

Wedding Pictures

2008-07-17T15:12:00.000-05:00

In case you were not aware...our wedding pictures are online and we LOVE them! Go to the web page below, click on our names and picture, and enter our last name (kirkland) to view them. Special thanks to Catherine Cousins. If you ever need professional pictures taken, you should seriously consider using her. She does fantastic work and is a great vendor to work with. She made our wedding day very stress free!

love, allison

http://www.catherinecousins.com/clientpage.html

2008-07-08T20:51:00.000-05:00

"Two blogs in one day?" I know that's what every one of you said when you saw this, haha. Unbelievable, I know! I'm pretty impressed with myself, I must say :) No, in all seriousness, I really do have something productive and meaningful to say other than just to chat incessantly about my amazing husband and the most incredible 4 weeks of my life.

Yesterday I started a new Bible study. I'm trying to get myself back into having a daily time like this because, to be honest, I've really been slacking. It's something that's been needed for a while and I've known it. Anyways, the new study is a Beth Moore study called "Stepping Up: A journey through the Psalms of Ascent". So, while I'm only on day two, I feel like it is something that the Lord is going to use to speak to me, to grow me, and to make me into what He would have me to be. I want to keep you up to date on some things that I learn for a few reasons. One is for me- I feel like if you expect me to update you, then I have some sort of accountability, so to speak. The other is so that something I may say (or that the Lord says through me) could be of some encouragement or spark of hope for someone reading this. I want to share just a few things with you now that I found particularly encouraging over the past few days.

The study that I am doing focuses on 15 of the 150 Psalms. The book of Psalms is one of my favorite books of the Bible because I feel like it is so "real", if that makes sense. I feel like the writers of the Psalms are really easy to relate to. There is hurt, rejoicing, pain and suffering, anxiety, and all the emotions in between. I have so felt like the Psalmists felt! I find it comforting, as some of you do, that the "man after God's own heart" has felt like I feel sometimes. Isn't it reassuring that Biblical, Godly men and women felt discouraged, angry, and despondent at times in their walk with God? On to my point...John Calvin said this about the Psalms, "I have been known to call the Psalms... 'An Anatomy of all the parts of the Soul'; for there is not an emotion of which any one can be concious that is not here represented as in a mirror. Or rather, the Holy Spirit has here drawn here to life all the griefs, sorrows, fears, doubts, hopes, cares, perplexities, in short, all the distracting emotions with which the minds of men are wont to be agitated." WOW!!!! AMAZING!! Calvin said exactly what I feel about the Psalms. They capture every emotion of the human heart, even though they were written some thousands of years ago. The Lord has a great way of making the Bible easy to relate to every one person. I am so emotional and I think that is why the Psalms are easy for me to personally relate to. I would challenge my friends to this--go flip through the Psalms and I promise that you will find at least one Psalm that describes exactly how you feel at that moment! It's amazing and God is so good at giving us exactly what we need right at that moment. I hope that something that has been said was encouraging or challenges someone that needed to be challenged. I invite you to please write to me about what you are studying, struggling with, or need prayer for. I would love to converse back and forth with you about what is going on. I, likewise, would LOVE to be challenged by you :) Until next time....

2008-07-08T11:52:00.000-05:00

Well our internet has been down for quite a while but I think we're back up for good now. At least, lets hope so. I promised a Boston blog, so here she is. While in the great Beantown, we got a few "War Eagles", so be proud. We had a wonderful time in Boston and we honestly didn't want to come back home. Boston is an amazing city with so much diversity, in most every way. There are people from all walks of life and there is so much to do. There were so many expectations that I had of our trip of what we would do and see and I can honestly say that Boston surpassed what I could have imagined. It is an amazing place...there is so much history in such a relatively small place and I don't think I realized just how neat it was until we were actually there. I couldn't begin to tell you about or show you pictures of all of the things that we did in the three days that we were downtown. However, I want to hit the highlights and show you what a great time we had!
We drove into Boston on Thursday, the day that the city hosted the celebratory parade for the Celtics' NBA Championship. It was CRAZY! There were blimps in the air, barracades everywhere, banners hanging from buildings, and more people than I've ever seen. No one worked, went to school, or did anything but drink and party for the Celtics.

These are a few pictures of the sights downtown near Government Center. This is the central part of downtown Boston where business and tourism really merge. Behind me in this picture to the left you can see the Boston City Hall with a banner. Also notice the Starbucks, or as Bradley calls it, my newest addiction. During the three mornings we were there our breakfast consisted of Dunkin Doughnuts and Starbucks coffee. Yummy! Anyways, that night, my incredible husband had a great idea. He wanted to take me on this VERY nice dinner cruise on the Boston harbor. So, we booked some tickets and ended up dressing up and going on a very swanky date :) It was so nice! For three hours, we took a great sunset cruise around the harbor, danced, and had a delicious four course meal. It was something we would normally never do, but it was so nice to be spoiling ourselves for once.

After our lovely dinner cruise on Thursday night, we got up on Friday and had breakfast in the Boston Public Garden and took a few pictures. We then proceeded on to the Prudential Center where we looked out at the city of Boston from the 50th floor observatory. It was amazing! We could see everything from the Italian North End, to the Charles River, to Fenway Park, to the Boston Harbor.

This is only half of the day on Friday so I will finish Friday afternoon and evening and all of Saturday in another blog because frankly, this is taking forever. :) Hope everyone is doing great and we love you all!

Honeymoon-Part 1

2008-06-26T10:52:00.000-05:00

This is Allison, of course. I'm going to start telling you all about our honeymoon and posting a few pictures, but it will have to be done in a few installments for several reasons. 1. We spent a week away from home and if you know the two of us, you know that we attract humorous stories and weird people. This trip was no dissapointment, to say the least. 2. We took over 1,000 pictures. Again, if you know us, we're a little trigger happy with the camera. And this time, we had two cameras for double trouble. 3. If you know anything about Boston, you know there are more sights than one can possibly see in one trip. I must say, we did a great job of hitting the high spots and doing what we were dying to do.

Ok...so after we got married on Saturday, we stayed in Birmingham that night at the lovely Wynfrey Hotel (very nice). Sunday after we ate a delicious brunch, we traveled back to Auburn to our house and proceeded to wash clothes and pack. Our flight left Monday out of Atlanta. Once arriving in Boston, we picked up our rental car (complete with multi-lingual Garmin. we preferred the British accent "Emily" for most of the trip) and then we began the hour and a half drive to Cape Cod. Once on The Cape, we stayed in a charming little town called Chatham. It's a very laid back town complete with beautiful homes, lighthouses, charming people, and great Clam Chowder :) I think we both had Chowder, or "Chowdah", at most every restaurant that we visited. Very yum. The picture below is of the Chatham Bars Inn which is a very expesive, but beautiful inn on the seashore in Chatham. It is surrounded by beautiul manicured landscape, a great view of the harbor and ocean, and beautiful cottages. On the same road you can find houses that look as though they were out of a movie, and one of them actually was. Needless to say, Chatham has homes that all feature the washboard three dimensional shingles and a very traditional look. The style of homes is very unique to this area but is absolutely beautiful. We spent Monday to Thursday morning on The Cape and we loved the very laid back atmosphere and the great weather. The weather while we were there never got warmer than 75 and there was a constant breeze. Coming back home was a reality shock in more ways than one. I can go into more detail later. For now, I'm going to post a few more pictures and put a small caption with each one.

The picture above is of us at a local beach in Chatham. You can't see it in this picture, but the dirty, rocky sand that they call a beach is behind us. The locals think they have the best beaches, they think they're gorgeous. However, had they been to the lovely beaches of the Gulf, they would realize what they are missing out on.

This home above was featured in the movie Summer Catch. The brick sidewalk is lined with amazing blue hydrangeas. Unfortunately, they were having their yard re-done. They had totally re-sodded, planted new blue hydrangeas and some other things. When Bradley was at this same home two summers ago, they hydrangeas were so large that they had grown over the sidewalk and actually blocked it completely. It is a beautiful home.

This is just another example of the style of home in Chatham. It's amazing.

More to come later...stay tuned for Boston.

Recap of the Wedding

2008-06-25T18:18:00.000-05:00

Hello all! Well, this is Allison and I have a feeling that I will be writing most of the blogs :) but that's ok. We want to make this blog to keep everyone up to date on what's going on in our lives. Both of our families live a little ways from us and we, well Allison, thought that it would be a very neat way to keep in touch.
In our first blog, I guess I'll write about some of our memories from the past few weeks. We've officially been newlyweds for 10 days and I must say, we LOVE being together and being married. It's really a neat experience to be able to share life with someone that you love this much on a daily basis. A very wise woman told me today that we should enjoy every day that we have because the longer you are married, the busier your life will get. We have truly enjoyed the past two weeks...the wedding weekend was amazing, the honeymoon was so much fun but relaxing at the same time, and being back to the "real world" has been good thus far.
The wedding weekend was, in one word, amazing! We had all of our friends and all of our family in one place for a spectacular time. Our ceremony was precisely what we wanted...a worship filled service that glorified the Lord. Special thanks to everyone involved, but especially Jeremy and Lorrie Beth who both sang (wonderfully!). The reception was a great party. I didn't get to speak to everyone because there were so many people there, but I think from everything that I've heard that everyone had a good time. I know we did! We both wish we could go back and re-live that day...it was so exciting. We watched our wedding video tonight together and it brought back some great memories. Thank you all for sharing in our day--you made it so special for us.

Stay tuned for a Boston/Cape Cod blog.