Big Changes for Next Year

I am so excited about the upcoming school year! I am going to move down to teach 2nd grade next school year! I'm excited about the changes, but nervous of course. It was so hard to leave my team. We have been working together for 4 years and I feel like we really had our groove! But, I was also getting bored with the routines and really needed a change! So a couple of weeks ago, I packed up my classroom, threw away a ton of stuff (seems to be a pattern of late), and moved my things downstairs. I'm in love with my classroom already! It should be relatively quiet, since it's not in a pass through hallway. Also, it's one of the few classrooms in our building with a mounted projector. I am really excited about having the projector. I've been using the promethean slate for a lot of my lessons and I think that the little ones will be really engaged in their learning while using this, and I won't have to drag in a cart.

So I have a lot of learning to do over the summer, but after a few weeks of relaxing by the pool, I figure that I'll be ready to tackle a new curriculum and a new math series. But for now, I have a new book to enjoy!

Disney Day 2

On Sunday, we woke up bright and early and headed off to Epcot. This is probably one of my favorite parks! I absolutely love walking around the world in the World Showcase. We first jumped onto Test Track with the kids - Christopher insisted on "driving"!

After our test driving session, we took the kids over to the Character Spot so that Caileigh can meet some of her buddies from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse! It was so much fun to watch her see the characters for the first time! She was timid but she didn't freak out. I was more than happy to carry her over to meet the characters. In a couple of years, I am sure that she will have a much different feeling toward Mickey, but it was cute to watch her during these first few interactions.

Our next stop was Soarin'. This is an amazing ride! If you haven't seen/heard of it before, you are flying in a hang glider over different parts of California. We are going to get to go to California next year, so it was fun checking out some of the sights we will get to see next summer.

We then headed toward World Showcase - which is my favorite! We let the kids check out some of the items along the way then went to Great Britian for fish and chips. Yummy!!

We left Epcot following lunch, and went back to the hotel for swimming and naps. After resting, Matthew wasn't feeling too well (it was so hot!) so he stayed back to the hotel to rest with Grandma, and Mike and I took the kids over to Animal Kingdom. Animal Kingdom was relatively empty. We let Maddie and Christopher ride Expedition Everest alone, and then headed over to the safari. We don't usually do the safari ride late in the day, but the animals were out in full force! We have been coming to Animal Kingdom since it first opened, and we have never seen the cheetahs up close! The hippos are almost always in the water, but this time we got to see one out of the water enjoying his dinner!

We finally headed back to the hotel for the evening. Thankfully, Matthew was feeling better, so we grabbed some dessert from concierge and watched the fireworks from our balcony.

Disney - Runyon Style!

We just returned from our latest trip to Walt Disney World! We had so much fun this time around. We stayed at the Polynesian, which is one of my favorites anyway. We got to upgrade a bit thanks to my wonderful mother-in-law, and had the Magic Kingdom view plus concierge service! Talk about being spoiled! We had breakfast every morning, snacks and beverages throughout the day, appetizers and wine in the evening, and mini desserts and cocktails at night. Such a treat!

We left last Friday evening (which was the last day of school) and drove through the night. It was surprisingly easy, especially since all the kids were fast asleep by about 10 pm and slept through the night. I slept off and on while Mike drove, and then took over the driving through southern Georgia and northern Florida. We arrived in Orlando at about 8:30 am - it took under 14 hours to drive the entire way! I was surprised to learn that we were upgraded to the club level when we arrived, although Mike knew ahead of time.

Our first stop was to get a bite to eat at the Kona Cafe! They have this amazing dish called Tonga Toast! Basically, it's this ginormous french toast stuffed with bananas and covered with cinnamon and sugar. Oh my! It's wonderful! Matthew and I shared a piece because there was no way that either one of us could finish it all!

Soon after eating, Mike's mom arrived and we checked in. We decided to hold off going to the parks right away because we knew the kids were going to be exhausted, so instead, we went to the pool. The kids played in the pool for awhile and then we went back to the room for much needed naps. When everyone woke up it was raining, but we decided to not let it stop us, and hit the Magic Kingdom. We really just took in all the sights, but then headed over to Buzz Lightyear. Caileigh loved this, especially since she is really into the Toy Story movies. The kids then wanted to ride the race cars at the Speedway. We then called it an early night because we were beat from the long drive and the lack of sleep!

Tips Tuesday - Cleaning

This week's Tips Tuesday is all about Cleaning Tips. I'm not sure that I'm the go-to person for cleaning tips. I'm actually looking forward to reading about what other people do to keep their houses tidy.

Like Leslie, I also get emails from www.flylady.net. I don't necessarily follow everything they send, but I am definitely on board to cut the clutter. We are getting ready to move in a couple of weeks, and we have purged tons and tons (I think literally) of clutter. I absolutely refuse to move junk, and I think we've done a good job to get rid of what we do not love.

The other tip that I think is helpful is to spend 15 minutes just picking up after the kids go to bed. It amazes me how messy the kids can be in such a short amount of time. If I can stay ahead of their messes, then it keeps the messes away.

Finally, I work full time, and we are so busy during the week and weekends. I have to spread out the cleaning throughout the week. I need to set a schedule and stick to it each and every week. Maybe being in the new house will help to establish some new habits. I'll keep you posted on that one!

Tips Tuesday! Cooking

Read more: http://www.lambertslately.com/#ixzz0flAGYVIl

This Tuesday, it's all about the cooking! I really do like to cook (I'm not good at it, but it's improving!) Since I'm a budding cook, I look to all sorts of places to find my inspiration. Some of the main requirements are that the recipes have to be healthy and delicious! They also need to have some form of meat - my husband doesn't do vegetarian! Here are some of my favorties.

The Pioneer Woman - seriously, this woman rocks! I don't know of too many in the blogosphere who hasn't heard of her. Not only is she hilariously funny, but this girl can cook! I love trying out the recipes that she posts on her website. Last night I made her recipe for homemade spaghetti and meatballs. De.lic.ious! Not only did my husband and I like it, but it received rave reviews from our four munchkins! I really need to buy her new cookbook!

The Food Network - Wouldn't it be awesome to be able to have your kitchen set up like the onee on the Food Network? I'd just like to have the clean up crew! Sometimes I think my husband thinks I am the clean up crew. Anyway, there are some very easy and delicious recipes on the website that my family loves. Hello, Paula Dean? We made her chocolate lava cakes on Valentine's Day - Oh. My. Goodness!!

So I do a lot of recipe searching on the weekends. I wish that I had time to make a bunch of new recipes every week, but let's face it, with a full time teaching job and four kids, it doesn't happen. So there a lot of stand by meals that we plan from week to week. On the weekends, I will meal plan for the week. I willl write everything down, and check with what we've got in the pantry. From there, I will send my husband grocery shopping (sometimes I go too) to make sure we have everything on hand for our meals for the week.

I make the decision about what my husband or I cook based on what is going on in the evening. For example, last night, we had nothing going on, so I could make home made spaghetti and meatballs. Tonight we were slammed with tutoring, a choir concert, and a basketball game, so it was steak sandwiches (from Sunday's dinner). Planning really helps with keeping the food budget down. We can avoid the drive thrus a lot more.

So there you have it, this is how we roll with cooking in a busy household of six! How does it roll in your house?

Tips Tuesday - Grocery Store Tips

I wish I could say that I have a grand plan for grocery shopping that would make everyone's life so much easier! I don't, but what I (and when I say "I", I mean "we") do works for us - most of the time.

I am a mom to 4 kids, so dinner is probably the biggest and most expensive part of our grocery budget each week. My husband and I start by looking through the different store ads in town. From there, we see what's on sale and then try to plan our meals around what is on sale. I make a list from the meal plans, then add the typical staples that our family wants, needs, etc, and then go from there. I also bring my lunch to school everyday, so I make sure to add my typical lunch food to the grocery list.

I wish that we had a grocery store that doubles coupons, but there aren't any here, but we will use a coupon if there is one for something we need or want. My husband used to be really bad about buying things we didn't need just because he had a coupon for it, and my pantry started looking ridiculous! Thankfully, he doesn't do that anymore!

I'll be honest with you, I really don't like grocery shopping. Because we have 4 kids, I will often send my husband to the store and I will stay at home with the kids. It usually costs us too much extra money to go with all 4 kids, and it helps us stay within our budget to "divide and conquer!"
So those are my "tips." I'm hoping to provide some insight to how a somewhat larger family makes things work, as well as learning some great tips from others!

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

So, one of my favorite bloggers, MckMama, has these "stream of consciousness" posts, that I find totally random and rather hilarious. I thought I'd give one of these random posts a try, since quite honestly, it takes some pretty major events that make me want to write a blog post.

So here goes...

It's supposed to snow tomorrow. A lot! I'm actually really excited about that. I think we (and when I say "we" I mean "teachers"!) get more excited about the anticipation of school closing than the kids do. A few weeks ago, we had a two hour delay, and I didn't hear the phone ring for the staff phone call. So when I got up, and turned on the tv waiting for my Keurig (that's a whole 'nother post on it's own!) I saw a bunch of schools having delays, and I looked down at the phone and saw the school number on the caller id! Let me just say how excited I was for that delay! So yes, I am hoping to look down at the caller id tomorrow morning and see where our school has been delayed.

Our house is coming along very quickly. Almost too quickly. It's hard to believe that not all that long ago we had a huge mud hole, and now we have a house that is in the process of being painted right now. It's crazy. Unfortunately, I have been so busy lately that I haven't taken any pictures of the building process. Bummer! I was hoping to photo journal the whole thing, but I think I've taken like 2 pictures since we've started. Oh well! We are supposed to close very soon! I'm so excited, but really nervous! Maybe I can get there this weekend and take a few pictures before the kitchen and bathrooms are done.

This is the model version of our new house!!

We really have a garage...

Mike had an interview on Tuesday. He was called back for another today! Yeah!! I am really praying for him right now. I am so proud of him (even when he says I'm being condescending - in a loving sort of way) He is my rock right now - even when I should be the one who's there for him, he is so positive, so optimistic. He's my rock!

This Little Girl...

Lights up my day

Counting My Blessings

Last month something bad happened to us. Well, it's happened to a lot of people over the past couple of years - but it happened to us....again. My husband's job was eliminated. Did I mention that this has happened a lot to us over the past few years? He is in sales, so job cuts are something that we are (unfortunately) used to.

Job loss never comes at a good time, but we are in the process of building a new house. Back in early December when I learned that my husband would not have a job at the end of the month, I was so pessimistic. I constantly whined that he would never have a job in time, that we weren't going to move into the house that we have been working so hard to afford. I would (and still am) praying fervently that he would find a job in time.

One morning while I was praying, something hit me. Well, not literally, but you get the idea. I heard this voice that said, "Kim, quit whining about what you don't have and what you can't control and start being thankful for what you do have!"

Then I started thinking about it. Here I am worrying about what I can't control, and I'm not thanking God for my blessings.

And boy, do I have a lot of wonderful, wonderful blessings! I have a wonderful husband who I have known for 20 years this June. We have been married for 15 years, and will celebrate our 16th wedding anniversary this June. He is my best friend, and love him more than I can imagine.

I have 4 healthy, beautiful, smart children. They are my heart and my joy. I love my kids with everything I am. I read so many different blogs, many of which tell stories of the loss of their precious babies, or sick children. I am so blessed that I can blog about the funny things one of my kids said, or their accomplishments in school or on the ball field. We don't have to worry about doctors' visits or trips to the hospital. I am so blessed.

I have a home. No, it's not the house that fits all our needs (is there such a thing?) but it's clean, it keeps us warm, and it suits us for now. Do I still hope and pray that the house we are building right now will be ours? Yes, most definitely. But will it be the end of the world if it doesn't happen? Nope. We will survive.

I have a job that I enjoy. So even in the scary midst of unemployment, I know that I have a stable, secure job that I will go to each day.

This positive change of heart has done wonders for me and for my husband. I am still praying every day - all the time - for him to find a great new job that fits him, but I am making sure that along with those prayers, I am remembering to thank God for all the wonderful blessings that I have in my life.

It's been far too long since my last post. In fact, one of my new year's resolutions is to devote more time to this blog. I am not doing it for anyone out there who might be reading this, but more so for me because I have so much going on inside my head that I have to get out.

I used to write in my diary. A lot! In fact, I cringe to think what might have happened with those diaries of long ago. There is one inside my bedside table as I write this, and if my kids ever saw it - yikes!

Once upon a time, I would write when I wanted to get pregnant. I would write about my desires to have a baby, about my cycles, gripe about my mother in law, etc... Now, my baby making days are probably behind me, but I don't want that to be a reason for me not to write.

So a lot has been going on in our life lately. We started building a house! Very exciting, right? Well, not exactly. As I write this, our loan for the house has not even been approved yet. They have already framed the house. Mike and I toured the house today and it was fun to go through the house and point out where things would go in the different rooms of the house. Of course, I'm guarded, because I know there's that possibility that things could fall through.

So what else is going on in our life? Well, unfortunately, Mike was laid off from his job. I hate this because it has happened so many times in the past several years. It's never a good time to lose a job, but explain to me why companies feel the need to let a person go right before Christmas. I have hopes for him to find a job very soon, but the ball is in someone else's court right now. Did I mention that I absolutely hate to be out of control?

I have been praying like crazy for him to get a new job soon. I have been asking others to join in and pray with us for him to find a new job. He has a few leads so far, but everyone wants to wait until after the first of the year to make any decisions. It's so hard to be patient! I know that God has a plan for us, but quite honestly, I sure wish He'd hurry up and reveal His plans to us!

So it's a new year and there is a blank book in front of us, just waiting to be filled. So what do I want to accomplish in this new year and decade?

• To be a better wife. Mike gives so much to me, and I feel like I don't give as much as I take. My husband is the best, and I want him to know this every single day!
• To be a better mom. To enjoy every moment with my kids.
• To be the teacher to my students that I expect for my kids.
• To be a better homemaker. I like to think that I'm an organized person in a lazy person's body!

So it's out there. I am going to need help out there for anyone who may possibly read this to hold me accountable.

Happy New Year to all!