What’s Up July

   Happy Wednesday, Y'all

Just kidding…

You see, I had big plans to post this on Wednesday. However, I was in the middle of my 63.5 hour trip back to Senegal, all thanks to flight delays, cancellations, rerouting, etc. It was crazy! Therefore, uploading this post definitely didn’t happen on the day I'd originally planned. And then I've been in a mixture of a brain fog and stress induced computer work finishing ever since I arrived. So today's the first day I've had to work on it. So let’s try it again...

Happy Monday, Y’all :)

Today, I'm joining Shay and Sheaffer for their What's Up Wednesday link-up. 

Every month we answer the same list of questions based on how things are currently going in our lives.

So let's get started...

What am I eating?

I'm back in Senegal and missing Chick-fil-A and my mom's home cooking. But since school starts back this week for teachers, I’m back in Weekend Meal Prep Mode. So yesterday, I whipped up a big batch of Broccoli Chicken Alfredo to have this week.

What am I reminiscing about?

My time in Alabama with my family. Over the years, people have occasionally questioned why I have gone back to the US each summer.  Multiple reasons… 1) Support Raising 2) My primary ministry - what I was hired by AGWM to do - is to teach at my school and in the summers, that ministry is not happening. 3) Even if I’m support raising, it’s still a personal expense so it’d be like anyone else saving for an annual summer vacation. So I’m not using mission funds to pay for it. Anywho, I digressed a bit there… Back to the reminiscing ;)

 What am I loving?

I'm loving having a slow start to the school year. We have a super long time of Professional Development at the beginning of each school year (which starts tomorrow). ...longer than most schools I know of. But it's not all bad. We’re learning good stuff. Plus, as a result of this time, I can put in a little bit of classroom work time each day either before or after PD sessions, and not have too much to do all at once, or to be scrambling in the last day or so before students return. So that's nice. And let's face it... I love working on lesson plans and preparations for a new school year. I really really do. And as a teacher who does not have a planning/prep period like others do, having this extra time before school begins is something I love too.

What have I been up to?

Saturday was the 13th anniversary of the day I first arrived in Senegal. It's hard to believe it's been that long. I'm so grateful for this work God's called me to do. I love teaching. I always have. And I've loved getting to work with such incredible students at Dakar Academy over the past 13 years.  Being able to have teaching be my primary ministry (missions) assignment has been such a gift! 

What am I dreading? 

It’s Rainy Season in Dakar. And while it does cool things off, my “old lady ankles” do not like the pain brought on by the rain. We haven't had any rain since I got back. But I know it's coming. So yeah… I'm kind of dreading that.

What am I working on?

Getting my lost/missing suitcase found, which is proving to be quite challenging :(

 What am I excited about?

My birthday is on Saturday. So there’s that :)

What am I watching?

Nothing... I really do think I could live my life without TV.

What am I reading?

I’m rereading Emotionally Healthy Spirituality with my school co-workers for our required summer PD reading. This makes the 2nd time we’ve read it together, and my 3rd time reading it. I purposefully saved it til the end of my time in the US, knowing I wanted it to be fresh on my mind. It’s a good book. I feel like I learn so much each time I read it. So anywho, I started it during my ridiculously long travel time this past week and I’m almost finished with it. My plan is to finish tonight.

What am I listening to?

Nothing new - Anyone have a recommendation for me? 

What am I wearing?

I’ve been “reunited” with my denim jacket and I’m happy. I had left it at my mom’s house a couple years ago. But I was happy to be able to bring it back with me this time. It’s surprisingly lightweight so I won’t have a heatstroke wearing it in Dakar. …which is good since it’s, seriously, one of my most favorite pieces of clothing :)

However, when I wrote this post in draft mode, I fully expected to say the above. But alas, my denim jacket is in my missing suitcase. So, I’m not actually wearing it just yet… 

 What was I doing this past weekend?

I worked in my classroom a bit and then went out for dinner with some friends on Saturday. Then last night, we had a mini staff get-together. And while I'd planned on working in my room yesterday, I, instead, decided to take the day off and slept almost all day. Y’all, I was exhausted. I’m telling you… Traveling, in itself, can be tiring. But the flight back to Senegal about did me in.

What am I looking forward to next month?

My birthday, of course :)

Past that, I'm looking forward to seeing my returning students again, and getting to know my new students. I’m also looking forward to finally having another Special Ed Teacher at my campus, to share the load. And even though I won’t actually have any less students this year, since we had so many new kids apply, at least I know it’s not still me doing it all by myself. And I’m happy about that :)

Favorite Recent Amazon Find?

I ordered all sorts of fun things off of Amazon and brought them back to Senegal with me for my classroom and my apartment. And if my missing suitcase ever shows up, I’ll probably show off a few fun things then :)

What else is new?

A friend graciously gave me her treadmill when she left at the end of this past school year. I’m looking forward to using it this year. 

And that's what I'm up to this month.

What about you?

What are YOU up to this month?

Currently

Happy Wednesday, Y'all

Today, I'm joining Anne from In Residence for her monthly link-up, where we share what's currently going on in our lives. And each month, Anne gives us a list of prompts to use to guide our posts.

July's prompts are...

  * enjoying * having * hoping * picking * using *

I'm currently enjoying all of the family time I’m getting while in the States this summer.

I'm currently having a nice time visiting churches, and sharing my heart about the ministry God has called me to.

I'm currently hoping for a good week next week, at the annual MEGA Conference, put on by the AL State Dept. I’m a nerd and love learning all the things :)

I'm currently picking out this Bible for myself (or, at least, I did pick it out already). I have been saving for a year and finally had enough to purchase it. So excited for start using it to read/study/journal through.

I'm currently using the lack of cell service and Wi-Fi at my mom’s house to my advantage this summer. …which means, I’m catching up on my reading this summer :)

And that's about it for me at the moment.

So what about you?

What are you currently up to?

What’s Up June

  Happy Wednesday, Y'all

Today, I'm joining Shay and Sheaffer for their What's Up Wednesday link-up. )

Every month we answer the same list of questions based on how things are currently going in our lives.

So let's get started...

What am I eating?

Chick-fil-A, of course, since it’s my favorite anytime I’m back in the States ;) Although, let’s be honest. I’ve only been once.

Past that, I’ve been eating as many salads as possible. While I eat salad in Dakar, it’s not as frequent since it’s so much extra work with having to clean it so I don’t get sick and having no pre-chopped/pre-packaged options available…

What am I reminiscing about?

This past school year school year... It was exceptionally hard. Busy. Exhausting. But I sure did (do) love the kids God's allowed me to work with this school year. And our crew did make all sorts of happy memories this year - ones that made the hard/busy/exhausting times more worth it :)

 What am I loving?

All of the extra time spent with my Mama :) 

What have I been up to?

Spending as much time as possible with my  nieces…

What am I dreading? 

Going outside… We’re having record breaking temps here in Alabama. And ironically, it is both hotter and more humid than it is in Senegal. Therefore, I’m choosing to stay inside as much as possible :)

What am I working on?

Ordering all sorts of fun things for our junior class to sell in the cantina (school snack shop) throughout the year. Thankfully, our other class sponsor, and a few other parents too, are all brining stuff back too. It’s hard to believe these kiddos are starting their 11th grade year. Time flies, y’all!

 What am I excited about?

Being with my family :)

What am I watching?

Mostly just the Food Network… Y’all, good/clean options on TV are getting harder and harder to find. Just saying.

What am I reading?

I just started my 13th book of the year… Katie Couric’s autobiography. 

What am I listening to?

I watched Sing 2 with my nieces the other day and promptly bought the soundtrack on iTunes. I may or may not have had the songs on repeat ever since :)

What am I wearing?

I got my mom (and some others) DA t-shirts. And my mom and I randomly wore them on the same day the other day. So of course we commemorated the day with a picture :)

 What am I doing this weekend?

I’ll be speaking at the first church my dad ever pastored (and where he was pastoring when he and my mom got married) on Sunday. I love being able to share my heart about the work God’s called me to do and the incredible kids God’s allowed me to work with all these years. Not sure I’ll be doing anything special to celebrate the 4th…

What am I looking forward to next month?

I'll have most of the month with my family. I’ll have 4 more services to speak at/in. I'm also attending a week-long teachers conference mid-month, which I'm looking forward to. I’ve got some work stuff to keep working on, prepping for next year. I’ll need to do some shopping for things to take back to Senegal. I’ll be helping my mom in her recovery after surgery. And after that, I'll have just a bit more time with my family before it's time to head back to Senegal and continue doing the work God's called me to do.

Favorite Recent Amazon Find?

I’ve ordered a few things from Amazon to bring back with me to Senegal at the end of the summer. My favorite so far? This shirt/hat combo :)

What else is new?

Nothing really  

And that's what I'm up to this month.

What about you?

What are YOU up to this month?

Currently

    Happy Wednesday, Y'all

Today I'm joining Anne from In Residence for her monthly link-up, where we share what's currently going on in our lives. And each month, Anne gives us a list of prompts to use to guide our posts. 

June's prompts are...

  * celebrating * giving * taking * trying * wearing *

I'm currently celebrating the end of another school year. Well, almost.We still have a few more lessons to teach this week for my younger kids and review days for my older kids, the rest of this week, and then my older ones have exams next week. But still... We had our end of year class party yesterday at lunchtime, celebrating with all of the students who visit our room during the day. It was a little loud, but it was so much fun. I love getting to work with these incredible kids (and the lady that helps us too). 

I'm currently giving (or rather, I gave) two of our students a group-work assignment to write a play. Being the obsessive Star Wars fans they are, they chose to write a Star Wars themed play. It has been so much fun listening to them working together the past week or so, coming up with ideas and characters, writing their script, making name tags for the characters, and making plans for their big presentation later this week. I love it!

I'm currently taking a few gifts back to the US - a few thank you gifts, a few birthday gifts, and a few gifts for my nieces since I can't not get them something. I also may or may not have bought myself an "I made it through this school year" gift, too. Ha! Anywho - My plan is to go ahead and pack this coming weekend. That way I can have some down time each evening after exams next week. We'll see.

I'm currently trying to sort through my stuff, in preparation for a yard sale our staff and graduating seniors put on at the end of each school year. How does one accumulate so much stuff?! And I'm only leaving for a few weeks over the summer. Some co-workers are leaving for good. So I can only imagine how much stuff they'll have to sell/give away.

I'm currently wearing nothing terribly exciting. Whatever is comfortable and is dressy enough to meet dress code at school... That's the name of the game around here :)

And since it's my blog, and I can, here are a few more...

I'm currently enjoying leftovers for lunch this week. I made some orange chicken and rice, green beans, and egg rolls the other night. There was enough for a friend and I to have dinner that night and still give me leftovers for a few days. And that's always a good thing in my book!

I'm currently counting down the days 'til I see my family. I'm so ready. And in case you're wondering, there is only 11 more days from today :)

And that's about it for me at the moment.

So what about you?

What are you currently up to?

What's Up April

 Happy Monday, Y'all

Today, I'm joining Shay and Sheaffer for their What's Up Wednesday link-up. Except, I'm finally posting on Monday. Such is life when you're busy... 

Every month we answer the same list of questions based on how things are currently going in our lives.

So let's get started...

What am I eating?

I wanted fries the other night, but didn't have any frozen ones in the freezer. So I decided to make some homemade fries and then seasoned them with garlic salt. Seriously y'all... So quick/easy/delicious!

What am I reminiscing about?

Times with my dad... It's hard to believe that he passed away 7 years ago. At times, it really does seem like it happened just yesterday. I've been struggling a bit lately and I just keep thinking about how much I wish my dad were here, so I could talk with him about it... Not to mention, how I hate it for my mom, knowing that last week would've been their 38th anniversary. 

 What am I loving?

I've been loving the weather we've been having lately. It's cool at this time of year, but not freezing. And the sun's out, but it's not so hot, as to make us feel like we're going to have a heat stroke. So yeah... Definitely loving it right now :)

What have I been up to?

Helping all of my people plan their schedules for next year... There are so many different "puzzle pieces" to figure out. I love that part of it. But even so, there are so many other aspects of schedule creating for my people that is hard. So my brain is working in overdrive at the moment :)

What am I dreading? 

Nothing really...

What am I working on?

There's so much going on in my head at the moment. My job is not always the easiest. Teaching is hard. Teaching Special Education is really hard. Teaching Special Education overseas is super hard. So yeah... I'm working on weeding through the mental to do list I have at the moment...

 What am I excited about?

I got a new stove. The burners on mine were slowly going out, which made cooking a bit tricky. So, I'm a little excited about cooking again. So there's that :)

What am I watching?

I'm wrapping up a Creation/Evolution unit in one of the science classes I teach. So we've been watching all sorts of  little videos about those, all in hopes to make this mostly abstract topic more engaging for my people. 

What am I reading?

One of the joys of teaching at a Christian school is being able to teach and study the Bible with students. I love reading through various parts of Scripture with my people. I love seeing them enjoy their reading/studying. And I love how well they're learning what we're studying.

What am I listening to?

Is it sad to say that by the time Saturday comes along, I look forward to listening to silence? My days are full with teaching and meetings and such. And I love my students. I love doing what I'm doing. But it's exhausting. So while I love my people, I also love my quiet Saturdays too ;)

What am I wearing?

Nothing terribly exciting... I do need to pick up a few things when I'm in the States this summer. Line drying clothes in the almost constant harsh sun/sand takes its toll on clothes here. That's for sure. So, I figure I'll look for some deals when I'm back there this summer.

 What am I doing this weekend?

Well, considering the weekend's over... I'll, instead, answer what I did over the weekend. I did very little that was productive, to be honest. I stayed in my classroom late on Friday, finishing up lesson planning just so I could relax over the weekend. Then Saturday I rested/relaxed and did a little meal prep. And on Sunday, I was in bed with a massive headache most of the morning and when I could finally sit up and look at my computer screen long enough to do so, I did a little lesson planning last night. Sometimes, God knocks me flat of my back to get me to slow down. I can be a little stubborn, after all ;)

What am I looking forward to next month?

The arrival of May means we're one month closer to Summer Break. So there's that. I'll also be able to finally buy my plane tickets for the summer too, once I get paid in mid-May. So that's exciting too! Y'all... The price of plane tickets is no joke! And contrary to popular belief, it is not a mission expense. So I save up and pay for it out of pocket. But that's okay. It's 100% worth it. Anywho - Past all of that, I've got some fun stuff planned with my classes this month - experiments and projects and novels to read... :)

Favorite Recent Amazon Find?

My black sandals "died" and needed to be replaced. So a friend who made a recent trip to the States was kind enough to bring back this pair I ordered from Amazon. They're nothing fancy. But they're super comfy and they meet the shoe dress code requirements at work. So, I'm calling them a win.

What else is new?

Nothing much :)

And that's what I'm up to this month.

What about you?

What are YOU up to this month?

7 years

On this day, 7 years ago, my dad passed away.

7 years ago, my heart was hurting so very badly.

It was the day before my dad’s 56th birthday.

And it was only 9 days before my parents' 31st anniversary.

Some days it still feels just like yesterday. And other days it feels like it's been an eternity. I suppose that is just how grief is...

My dad loved the Lord with all his heart. And he loved sharing about the Lord with anyone who would listen. In fact, my dad preached his last sermon from his hospital bed exactly one week before he passed away. Using Romans 8:18 as his primary verse, he reminded us that, though we may experience suffering and pain here on earth, we can trust in the hope of our Savior. We can trust in the knowledge that if we are saved, we will experience that glory that is beyond compare.  And now, today, I am so incredibly thankful that his words are permanently etched into my memory. 

But some days... Some days I still wish I could  call or send him an email when I have a question about the Bible. Or when I want fatherly advice on a situation I'm in the middle of. Or when I want him to join in celebrating some accomplishment or another. Or when I want to ask him to pray for me, knowing he would do so immediately before even getting off the phone with me…

Some days I struggle more than others. Lately, it's been a lot. And while I had 29.5 years with my dad, I'm annoyed/sad that's all I got. Lately, I wonder why... I wonder why he had to pass away so young. I wonder why our family had to deal with this huge loss. I wonder why, if I ever get married or have children, he'll never get to meet them. I wonder why my mom has to be a widow. I wonder why my nieces will have such few memories of my dad - a man who absolutely, positively loved being a Pawpaw to those girls.

And then, I think about what I did/do have. I'm thankful for a Christian heritage he continued with our family. I'm thankful for the love of learning he passed down. 

I'm thankful for 29.5 years worth of happy memories.

I'm thankful, that even though, I'll never get to experience having him at my own possible wedding or births of possible future children, I got to see the joy/pride/love he showed on the day of my brother and sister-in-law's wedding and of all the time he joyfully spent with my beautiful nieces.

I'm thankful for so much.

And yes, I do still miss him terribly. 

But, I can smile, thinking of him hanging out with Jesus and talking to all the people from the Bible whom he loved to read/study/preach about for all those years. What a fun time that must be!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I've written memories-filled posts every year on the anniversary of his death, which can be found below. While still sad, it's nice for me to be able to look back and remember how God's been with me through the past years' anniversaries...

1 year

2 years

3 years

4 years

5 years

6 years

Currently

   Happy Monday, Y'all

Today I'm joining Anne from In Residence for her monthly link-up, where we share what's currently going on in our lives. And each month, Anne gives us a list of prompts to use to guide our posts. 

April's prompts are...

  * getting * going * planning * posting * thinking *

I'm currently getting back to school, after two weeks off for Spring Break. I can't say my break was entirely work-free. But still... I did get to sleep later than 5:30 each day, so that part was nice :)

I'm currently going, or should I say, I went, no where for Spring Break. I was supposed to go to Prague for a conference, which would have been quite awesome. But, between COVID and the stuff happening in the Ukraine, the conference got cancelled. I was definitely bummed about this cancellation at first. But I must admit... It was nice being home, having some quiet time, and resting, all of which will be especially nice, since April is going to be busier than normal for me. 

I'm currently planning lessons on the truth of Easter this week. Have I mentioned lately how much I love working at a Christian school? :)

I'm currently posting nothing terribly exciting... I did post the meme below on Facebook yesterday, as I was in the middle of pricing tickets for my flight to the US this summer. My oh my is flying expensive...

I'm currently thinking about two families who are hurting and mourning the loss of their loved ones. A pastor from a church in Alabama passed away. And then, a fellow AG missionary recently passed away, as well. I love the thought of both of these men hanging out with Jesus, swapping stories, and being welcomed by the people they helped lead to salvation. But even with that... My heart still breaks for two families mourning the loss of such great men, who so obviously loved their families and the people they ministered to. Will you help me pray for both of their families?

And that's about it for me at the moment.

So what about you?

What are you currently up to?