ABCs

April is Autism Awareness Month. And April 2nd is World Autism Awareness Day. I wrote a post including some of my thoughts on Autism on the 3rd. You can read it here.

I baked a cake for my kids today to celebrate doing their best all week on the standardized tests. And do you want to know the best comment I heard in regards to the cake? One sweet boy said "Mmm. I love the burnt part at the bottom! Good job Ms Nichols!"

I had carrots and ranch for breakfast the other morning. The healthiness of the carrots cancelled out the Coke. Right? :)

The first anniversary of my Dad's death is in only 5 days. It's so crazy to think it's been that long. It seems like just yesterday...

My crew was excited to watch a movie the yesterday after we finished testing. Some of them were even more excited to sit in the fancy chairs (camping chairs) and on their desks! :)

I have a kind of love hate relationship with Facebook's "On this Day" feed. Sometimes it's great and wonderful and other times... It's like a sucker punch to the gut with painful memories.

When I saw this goodness about gray hairs (oops, I mean glitter) growing, I just knew I had to share it on Facebook. Ah 30, you've brought so many of these little "glittery" strands into my life. Feel free to stop. Just sayin' :)

I'm so happy that testing week is over. Yay for getting back to our normal schedule! :)

Independence Day in Senegal was 10 days ago. I'm so grateful to be living in this country God's called me to. I love it here!

I've been booking services for June and July to help me connect (or re-connect) with churches and pastors and friends and share my passion for Senegal and Dakar Academy. Want me to come share with your church or group? I'd love to tell you all the cool things that are happening here! Send me an email at enichols85@gmail.com and we'll set something up!

We had Kids Club yesterday afternoon. One of the perks of not being in charge of it this year has been watching the kids as they participate. I love seeing how intrigued they are by the Bible lessons. It's awesome!

I wrote a post entitled Life Lately the other day. It was a fun look at what my life as of late has included.

I made blueberry and banana nut muffins for my students earlier this week. You would've thought I'd made the best thing ever judging by how excited they got over them. I so love this squirrely bunch of kids :)

I thought this quote needed to be shared the other night. I was told recently that I tend to dream really big. Not that that's a bad thing, but still... It got me thinking. What a blessing it is to already be living out some of my dreams. Now for the rest of them to start happening... :)

Sometimes, this is my opinion on life...

I am so proud of how well my kids did this week while testing. While I don't know their scores, I have never seen them work so hard and stay so focused for such long periods of time. It was awesome!

This quote popped up in my Memories feed on Facebook the other day. My mom and I were talking about this not long ago. It's kind of sad actually...

On Monday, I gave my student ring pops as part of their Testing Day One treat. They loved them! Their teacher may have loved them too :)

My school took our standardized tests this week. I do agree that they aren't completely evil. They can be incredibly helpful in some cases. But in others... 
 

A friend emailed me this funny-ness about thought bubbles. I laughed and laughed! And of course I shared it with another friend. 

My crew played the most hilarious and lively round of Uno ever on Tuesday after the tests. I've never laughed so hard in my life :)

I visited a tailor yesterday with a friend and dropped off a couple sets of fabric. Here's hoping the skirt and the dress I ordered fit like I'm hoping!

I played a kids worship dvd for my kids the other day, letting them vote on songs for us to share in Elementary Chapel on Friday. I love seeing these kids excited about worship!

My kids were eXcited to hear that we'd be doing elementary chapel this month and next month! I love their enthusiasm!

Last weekend some of my fellow AG peeps and I went to an Italian place here in Dakar and I had the yummiest dish I've ever eaten in my life. FOR REAL! If you're in Dakar, y'all have got to try this place out! 

So, I got stuck at the letter "Z" and decided to forgo it and include this trip down memory lane instead... :)