Springtime Snapshots

Happy Wednesday!!!

Um. Where has the week gone? I mean, I'm not complaining, but it sure has gone quickly.

SO much has happened in the past few days.

1). I started nannying and substitute teaching.

2). I've been searching like a mad-woman for teaching jobs.

3). My cousin had a baby. How I don't have a picture of this, I am not sure.

4). We discovered a slow-drip leak in our bathroom.

Well, this lil ol' slow drip decided to make an appearance in not only our bathroom, but our finished side of the basement. (It of course couldn't make it's appearance on the unfinished side...). We now have two HUGE unexpected projects going on at once: renovating a bathroom and a basement.

5). My hubby quickly learned how to become handy. ;)

6). We decided we needed a break from the reality that is homeownership and treated ourselves to some dining al fresco. Complete with Mexican food and skinny margs. My springtime FAVE!

7). I supported my hubby in the Easter Fun Run race on Saturday morning. I was one of about 5 of the 2,000 people there not running. Talk about feeling worthless and lazy. But hubs finished his 10K in 46 minutes. Awesome!

8). Met up with one of my newly-engaged friends that I've known since kindergarten. LOVE this girl!

9). We had a fantastic Easter Sunday, complete with a phenomenal church service, family time, relaxation, and a good ol' Kansas BBQ.

Hope you're all having a fantastic week!!! :)

Hi. I'm Awkward.

I like to consider myself a people-person.

I'm outgoing. And don't meet a stranger.

But in certain situations, I am known to get mega-awkward. Mega.

Take, for example, my desperation for a job driving me to go against every grain in my body and try to aggressively sell myself on why I am the best teacher candidate.

Two days ago, I realized that with this whole job-hunt thing, I'm going to have to take matters into my own hands. Get uncomfortable. Step out of the ol' comfort zone.

So, I feverishly worked until really late one night perfecting my resume, cover letters, and teaching portfolio.

And I decided I was going to march right into some schools, ask to speak to the principal, and tell them they they should totally hire me (With a little more tact, obviously). I imagined they would be so impressed, they would invite me in their office, beg for more information about me, and tell me that I had an interview the next day.

Um. Definitely didn't play out that way.

Because I'm awkward, remember?

So, I get all dolled up, drive out to the middle of nowhere, and walk into the school. Let's just say, I walked in, asked for the principal, introduced myself (portfolio in hand), and said "Hi. I'm interested in working at your school. I've heard great things. K-thanks-for-your-time." And I exited portfolio in hand 5 seconds later.

I got nervous. And bolted.

Needless to say, I haven't gotten a phone call.

Sigh.

This is exactly why I never went into sales.

And, I did much better with the others schools I went into. I was a bit more prepared.

Anyway. I still take the crown for Queen of Awkward.

P.S. HAPPY GOOD FRIDAY! So thankful and humbled to have someone who loves us so unconditionally that he would send his son to die for us!!!!

I'm baaaack and WILW

Tap.Tap.Tap. Is this thing on?

I promise to get back on the blog-wagon again. I just honestly have either 1). Not had any spare time between looking for jobs and working on the house or 2). Had absolutely no energy to muster up a blog post.

But I think Stella has her groove back.

And, what helped jump-start my groove? Well, I have an old-school-Mrs. Ruby-is-the-most-awkward-person-alive story. I will be sharing that one tomorrow.

But today, I'd like to join in on one of my favorite blogger's What I'm Loving Wednesday. Feel free to play along!!!

1). I'm LOVING that I've been able to sleep in a little...at least until 7:30 since I've been done with student teaching.

2). I'm LOVING substitute teaching.

3). I'm LOVING that I get to see my Little Rhody friends in exactly 1 month 1 day.

4). I'm LOVING this new home appliance/hardware/everything store. Seriously, have any of you heard of Menards? It is seriously Home Depot on steroids. It is huge and quite overwhelming.

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5). I'm LOVING Junior League. Ok, so I've only been to one meeting. And it was just last night. But seriously, I have never seen so many well-dressed, well-versed, beautiful and awesome women. One of the best ways to meet people...I am so excited to make new friends!!!

6). I'm LOVING Toy Story 3. If you haven't seen this yet, it is an absolute must. However, I should warn you, there is a strong possibility you will shed tears. Yes, it is a cartoon. But it just melts the ol' heart.

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7). I'm LOVING that it is s'mores and fire pit season! Dining al fresco AND fire pit season? I can't handle all the warm weather goodness!!!

8). I'm LOVING bangs right now. I had them awhile back. And I missed em'. Some people could take or leave them. But, I'm going to love and embrace them.

What are YOU loving this gorgeous Wednesday?!?!

The season is in full bloom

Wedding season, that is.

Last Saturday, we attended 1 of 12 weddings this year. Yes, 1 of 12.

It was the wedding of my freshman year college roommate/dear friend from high school.

And it was one heckuva bash.

Great way to kick off wedding-extravaganza-everyone-and-their-mom-is-getting-married-2011.

Some highlights included:

1). Purple flowers everywhere. So gorg. Couldn't handle it.

2). Glimmering sunlight shining so BRIGHTLY through the amazing stain glass while the couple said their vows. I think it was God's way of showing he was blessing the marriage. :)

3). The bride and mother of the bride's high-end designer gowns. Absolutely breath-taking. They were walking pieces of art.

4). Catching up with pals I haven't seen in 5 years. Good for the soul.

5). The way the groom looked at his bride as he gave the most thoughtful, romantic toast in wedding history.

6). Both grandmas cutting a serious rug on the dance floor.

7). Me and a super fun friend obnoxiously starting a conga line.

8). Going out to IHOP at 2:30 in the morning and witnessing a full-on brawl. No seriously, a guy punched a girl in the face. Tables and syrup were then thrown. (Ok, so this wasn't a highlight, but I had to share!)

(Enjoying our midnight snack pre-brawl)

My heart is happy

Yes, I am still alive.

Barely.

My body is begging me for a break and is slowly trying to recuperate from the past three months of go-go-go.

Last Friday was my last day of student teaching.

Holy moly, where did the time go?

I woke up that morning with a bundle of emotions: excitement, happiness, relief, sadness, and even quite a bit of anxiousness. I gotsta find me a job!

But by the end of the afternoon, there was no room in my heart for anything but JOY! My sweet fourth graders and amazing host teacher threw me a surprise going away party. The principal was in on it, and she brought me into a room full of my fourth graders, treats, tons of gifts, and even parents! I was completely overwhelmed and have never felt so grateful and thankful. I didn't feel worthy of such treatment! Needless to say, there were some tears shed...and not just mine. And, I've never gotten so many hugs in my life.

What a blessing. My student teaching experience was better than I could have ever imagined. I am now praying HARD to find a job and am trying to be hopeful and have faith that I will find the right job for me. But, I am so lucky to have the experience I did...

Goodbye Gifts. I made my little ones bookmarks with their initials.

So happy. They LOVED them.

Waterworks. This was the point where I started to tear up.

I learned from the best. My host teacher was AMAZING. She is fighting hard for me to find a job...

I'm officially a teacher. Monogrammed Lands End tote bag and all.

Wowza. Check out my fabulous cupcakes. Yes, those are cupcakes.

I am blessed. I mean, all of my gifts take over half the office.