Around the kitchen table

Since getting married and moving to a place that I can call my own, I have learned that I really enjoy cooking. I didn't really cook that much growing up because my mom always did. My sister really liked to bake, but I never found myself in the kitchen much. I occasionally remember baking cookies. I would get all the ingredients out on the island table and talk to myself pretending that I was on a cooking show.

I love having a meal ready for Anthony when he gets home from work. This is one tangible way that I can show him that I love him. Although I don't do this every day, the satisfaction of making something and giving it to someone you care about and yourself is really a great feeling. If it turns out that way it supposed to, that is even better!

Anthony and I have a phrase above our kitchen table which says, "The fondest memories are made when gathered around the table." Although I was usually the one who wanted everyone else to finish their food faster, I recognize now that had my family skipped the actually sitting down together we would have missed a lot of the bonding time that helped solidify our family. For me, this phrase doesn't just apply to eating at the table. We love to play games around the table, too! Anthony bought this game called Farkle this last week while we were in Michigan. I bet over the course of the week different family members and us played at least 20 games of Farkle. (I definitely recommend buying this game. You actually only need 6 dice and the rules, which I am sure you can find online. It is also a great game for just two people.)

Having friends and family gather around the table for food or games or both is such a sweet time. Enjoy it!

Esther

I just started Beth Moore's Bible study titled Esther: It's tough being a woman. I have never done a Beth Moore study before, but I have heard great things about her studies. Plus, I am being given this great opportunity to get to know some really great girls from Student Ministries.

I wanted to share three verses that Beth shared with us today. She has them on an index card where she can see them every day.

Colossians 2:10a- In Him I have been made complete.

Song of Solomon 7:10- I am my beloved's and his desire is for me. (this isn't referring to my hubby. I am the Lord's)

Psalm 90:17-Let the favor of the Lord our God be on me.

I don't need to be cellulite-free, 10 pounds lighter, the most put together, you fill in the blank. I am already complete in Christ. He desires me. He desires to have a relationship with me. WOW!

Memorial Day Weekend

I honestly don't know what more we could have jammed pack into this weekend. Here is the rundown of events:

Friday-We get all packed up and drive down to my parents' house in Colleyville. My sister is visiting from Tyler, and we are waiting for Eric, Sheryl, and sweet Lucy to arrive. Being an aunt is the greatest thing ever! It makes me never want to have children of my own. (that was a total joke, but I knew it would make a few people cringe, and I couldn't resist:) This was the first time that we had seen her walking--so cute.

Saturday-This was the only day during my brother's vacation that all of us could be together. We loaded up the car and headed to the park. It was so super windy. I have never seen wind like that around these here parts. My dad cooked for us on the camp stove. Breakfast has to be the best meal ever. Bacon, toad in the hole, pancakes, sausage, orange juice YUM YUM YUM! I vaguely remember going to the park to do this a few times when I was younger. One time it rained; the other time mom forgot the pans. Later that night we hopped on a plane to Grand Junction, Colorado, to watch Ryan, Anthony's brother play in the JUCO World Series. We were the last people in, which we were kinda bummed about, but holler, we got the only car left on the rental lot- a Chrysler 300. It made me stand a little taller and want to wear my enormous, obnoxious sunglasses all the time, even in the dark because we were that fly!

Sunday-Continental Breakfast at the hotel. We would l have liked to have some waffles, but the line never seemed to dwindle and the waffle maker was not shaped like the state of Texas. Clearly, the waffles would have tasted inferior, so why waste our time?

Anthony really wanted to go hiking at the Colorado National Monument. I kinda drug my feet about this because last time we went hiking it was super hot and we had to practically drag Zoey, Anthony's dog, the whole way. This was not the case this time. Since I was the only one old enough to drive the rental car, I got to drive all the way up the windy, steep mountain roads. Anyone ever see the Long, Long Trailer with Lucille Ball??--that is what I felt like. The scenery was beautiful, but it was so so windy. I stayed really far away from the edge because I didn't want to blow off. Later that afternoon, we walked around downtown GJ. Not much happening, but it was a cute downtown. Sunday was our 5 month anniversary, so it was fun to do something a little different.
Later that evening we headed to the ballpark to steak out our seats for the game. The wind was so incredible. I keep mentioning it because I don't think I have ever experienced wind this strong for that long. It was hard to watch the game with sand blowing in our eyes. We were super excited that Ryan got called into the game, so we could watch him play. He is so fun to watch.
The rest of the weekend kinda blurs together. I was vomiting that night, our flight got cancelled, we had to drive 16 hours to get home, we both had to take a day off work, we made it back safe and sound.

It was a busy, busy weekend full of family and friends, and we had a blast! (Minus the getting sick part:)

Goodbye Third Grade

Last week I found out that I was being assigned to 4th grade next year. This came as a huge surprise considering that the week before my principal had told our team that she was going to keep us together. I love my team. They are so amazing. Last year was our first year together. We all came from different places, but we meshed so well. Our personalities are really different, but we have had the same goal: success for our children--no personal agendas. I may be leaving my wonderful well-working machine of a team, but I have gained friends for life. Corny, but true.

Michelle-Thank you for sharing a wall with me, for letting me pop my head in whenever I have a question, and sending me attachments over and over again because I have deleted them.

Alice-Thanks for being the bilingual queen. You do so much more extra stuff that I don't even know the half of it. Thank you for always making puppy chow-it is the best. PS I still have your bowl.

Ann Marie-You were the one person I knew on the team when I started. Thanks for sharing all the first year teacher ropes with me. Thank you for letting me copy your files and always sharing everything you create.

Ernesto-Mr. Handy Man: Thank you for always have nails and batteries and rope and krazy glue and anything else that we could possibly think of. Thanks for taking our difficult kids and being flexible.

Alexa-my running buddy. You are so willing to drop everything to do anything for someone else. Thank you for all the encouraging words.

I will miss all of you next year as I move down to the dungeon, as Michelle calls it. Please come visit. My classroom, and life, is always open to you. You guys have been the best introduction to teaching!!!

Happy Mother's Day!

Goodness, I feel like I have not blogged in for-E-V-E-R! Last weekend we celebrated mother's day. My parents came up and visited. We cooked dinner, and my little brother was home from college. I love opening up our place to friends and family. It fills the heart with love. I am pouring love into them, and they are replenishing that love with love for me. It is a great feeling to give and receive. Growing up, I was always the first one to want to leave the table. "Ok, food is done, Can I be excused now?" I am realizing more and more the importance and joy of sitting around the table just talking.

Anthony and I made fajitas and this yummy strawberry salad. (I even convinced my brother to try it and he liked it!) To end it all we had a really tasty, and healthy, dessert. Yum! My mom is wonderful in so many many ways.
1. My mom is so sacrificial. She always puts herself last.
2. My mom is extremely sympathetic.
3. She is fair. She kept track of everything so that she did it exactly the same with all of us. Because, heaven knows, we would call her out if it wasn't exactly fair.
4. She raised four children. Not bragging about me, but we all turned out really well thanks to her.
5. She is a prayer warrior. Any time I had a struggle that I brought to her, she would ask me if I had prayed about it. At times, I probably got frustrated with this response. Over time though I realized that she believed in it. Prayer does work. Not that all your prayers get answered, but that you trust in God's provision enough to turn it over to Him...which is what we should be doing always.
6. She always had a meal on the table for us to eat together. I know this always wasn't easy especially when we whined about what she had spent time preparing. Now that I am cooking meals, I know how hard this is, and all I have to do is feed one extra mouth.
7. She taught me not to care what other people think. We had by far the ugliest, oldest car in the church parking. Anybody remember our old station wagon? Fun times. I used to be so embarrassed about riding in that thing. Eventually, I got over that, but I think that car taught me a big lesson. If people are going to judge me based on what I drive or what brand I wear, I probably don't want to be their friend anyway.
8. She is a hard worker and for little in return. She did not consider any job or task below her. That is why when we all started jobs as teenagers, we weren't the ones just standing around, we were always looking for work to be done.
9. She is super creative.
10. She doesn't pry. She manages to care about my life, marriage, husband, and decisions without being overbearing and a control freak. How nice that is to know that regardless of what decision I make, I will have a mom who supports me and loves me. She is a great example to follow.
Happy Mother's Day!

Ouch, ouch, ouch!

I feel like I am being broken. Being broken isn't always a bad thing. When you break a bone, it grows back stronger, right? God has really been working in my life lately with very little effort on my part. This post is more like a reflection and reminder for me, but it always helps me to have others share their struggles.

"Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another:

What! You too?

I thought I was the only one."

C. S. Lewis
I am the biggest empathizer. This last week a family at our church lost one of their sons in a car accident. He was my age and had been married for 3 years. I looked at his siblings' facebook pages several times this week. And my heart broke for them. It was amazing to see the body of Christ reach out to them, and their very God-centered reaction to this horrendous situation is a testament to their faith and our great God. But my heart hurts for them. It is one thing to say that God has a plan for my life, it is a completely different thing to accept that plan when it doesn't go the way that we anticipate.


My little brother posted this definition of forgiveness on his facebook yesterday: forgiveness is giving up my right to hurt you for hurting me. Wow...wow...wow! It would be easier to turn away from this powerful quotation and continuing harboring anger toward this person. And to be quite honest, that is what I want to do. My flesh is currently winning. I know the right thing to do, but...I was right. but...what that person did was really mean and hurtful. but...if I don't harbor this anger and resentment, it is like saying the other person is right. but...then they are going to think they won.
"Hey, Angela, guess what? My Son did that for you. He forgave you. You need to do that for this other person. Love, God."


I love, love, love what I do! I have always wanted to be a teacher. I had a little gradebook when I was younger, and I would give spelling tests to my stuffed animals. My job is everything that I have dreamed for for years. I love going into work. I enjoy the people I work with. Most importantly, I love precious children in my classroom. Sure, sometimes I lose sight of the fact that my classroom is a great platform to show them how to care for others, how to respect one another, how to be nice, and I complain. But God has given me great access into the lives of hundreds of students to be used as a positive influence on their life. But, there is a (strong) possibility that this job\ministry will be taken away from me because of teacher cuts. And that hurts my heart. There is a lot of talk about cuts and potential cuts at school. For the most part, I have been able to maintain the attitude talked about in Luke 12; however, it is difficult when friends are getting laid off.
For this reason I say to you, [U]do not worry about your [V]life, as to what you will eat; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. 23“For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. 24“Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor barn, and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds! 25“And which of you by worrying can add a single [W]hour to his [X]life’s span? 26“If then you cannot do even a very little thing, why do you worry about other matters? 27“Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. 28“But if God so clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you? You men of little faith! 29“And do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink, and do not keep worrying.
My worrying is not going to add another day or year to my job. All it does is show that I do not have enough faith in God to provide for my needs. If God has different plans for me for next year, I can be confident in knowing that these plans will be better than any plans that I can ever anticipate. I believe this.

Okay, all these random thought tied together: Therefore I am well content with weaknesses (God, I feel so vulnerable right now), with insults(that really, really hurt when they said those things about me and I can't get it out of my head), with distresses(I am concerned, I mean freaking out, about my job, and I don't want to be), with persecutions(Satan is tempting me not to trust in your perfect plan for my life), with difficulties(I may have to give up my cable tv and movie dates, and I don't want to), for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong(God make me strong in you. Not to boast in my strength, but to turn others to you). 1 Corinthians 12:10.

We have been singing this song at church for the last couple weeks. I love it!! I cry almost every time because it is so true, so true. And yet sometimes, I am so resistant to God. I want to work it out my way, I want to plan things that I have no control over. I want to be broken to be completely used by God for His purposes. I hope this is an encouragement to you as it is to me. You are good, You are good
When there's nothing good in me
You are love, You are love
On display for all to see
You are light, You are light
When the darkness closes in
You are hope, You are hope
You have covered all my sin

You are peace, You are peace
When my fear is crippling
You are true, You are true
Even in my wandering
You are joy, You are joy
You're the reason that I sing
You are life, You are life,
In You death has lost it's sting

Oh, I'm running to your arms,
I'm running to arms
The riches of your love
Will always be enough
Nothing compares to Your embrace
Light of the world forever reign

You are more, You are more
Than my words will ever say
You are Lord, You are Lord
All creation will proclaim
You are here, You are here
In your presence I'm made whole
You are God, You are God
Of all else I'm letting go

Oh, I'm running to your arms
I'm running to arms
The riches of your love
Will always be enough
Nothing compares to Your embrace
Light of the world forever reign

My heart will sing
no other name
Jesus, Jesus

Oh, I'm running to your arms
I'm running to arms
The riches of your love
Will always be enough
Nothing compares to Your embrace
Light of the world forever reign

O, honey!

The honeymoon period:

1. a vacation or trip taken by a newly married couple.
Anthony and I went to Cozumel, Mexico for our honeymoon. I wish this wasn't the case, but it was kinda a disappointment to us. First, we were ill-prepared. We didn't bring anything snacky, and it isn't like you can just walk across the street to Walmart. We didn't bring any activities to do. Those would have come in really helpful when Anthony got sick for like 24 hours. The resort was ill-prepared. I mean, we got a room with two twin beds the first night we were there. I dropped the line, "We are on our honeymoon" so many times I can't remember, but the only thing we got for the whole week was a half bottle of champagne. I don't even like champagne. Sure, snorkeling was fun, but if we would love the opportunity to redo that honeymoon trip. Honeymoon definition number one: not successful.

2. the month or so following a marriage.
We are coming up on our third month of marriage. Time has just flown by!
Honeymoon definition number two: over.
3. any new relationship characterized by an initial period of harmony and goodwill
My relationship with Anthony is in no way new, but it has definitely changed. Our first months of marriage have been characterized with car trouble, overwhelming work, death of a loved one, and relationship "adjustments." We can honestly say that we don't feel like we had any part of this definition of a honeymoon. "Real" married life began the day we married.
Honeymoon definition number three: non-existent.

4. any period of blissful harmony
Thank goodness there is a fourth definition!! Regardless of whether our trip wasn't as expected or that circumstances outside of our control have somewhat marred our initial period of harmony and goodwill, Anthony and I still are in blissful harmony. There will always be circumstances outside of our control, people who disagree with us, stressful situations at work. However, I am thankful for my smart brother's advice, "As long as you and Anthony are on the same page, nothing else matters." As long as we put our primary focus on our relationship, then people, circumstances, and stress cannot break our period of blissful harmony.
Honeymoon definition number four: SUCCESS!!