Praise the Lord!

I have some WoNdErFuL news! I got the job in Bassett! I had my second interview, this time with the principal, one of the assistant principals, and my former teacher, Mr. Martin--whom also was one of my references). The interview went great! I was extra jittery, but managed to calm my nerves after being able to talk to Mr. Martin a bit before actually going into the interview. I nailed each question asked and answered with confidence! I was very proud of how I appeared and presented myself. I daresay that I had not gotten this job, I would have specifically wanted details as to why not!

After the interview I went back home feeling great and upbeat! I was hoping to hear a phone call from HR that day. Didn't the principal state that they would make a recommendation to HR and then get back to for taking care of paperwork and fingerprinting, etc.? Surely a principal wouldn't say this to every candidate?! After working myself up into a good frenzy, my stomach was all in knots by about 6pm that same night. I of course talked to my husband who told me I was worrying over something I shouldn't, but of course I couldn't "let it go." By Friday, I long forgot about the interview (ok well as much as I could) and was eagerly looking forward to the trip the Leverett girls (Adam's mother's family) were taking--we went to Cape Charles for the weekend (pictures and post to come soon)! So needless to say by the time I had "let it go" I got the call, and surprisingly enough, HR isn't open on Fridays, but this one particular lady went in and decided to gimme the call. I'm glad she did or else I'm sure my heart would still be pounding away with anxiety. But all this is to say that the Lord is good, and all the praise and glory belong to him! So now we're off on to a new adventure....moving!

Yes, this actually happened...

I'm just now catching up to blogging regularly since school is officially out for summer, praise the Lord! I was never so anxious to be done with school as I was last year and this year! With that being said, this post is one I meant to write up in April, but forgot to do so. Therefore, without further ado allow me to introduce to you, Miss Piggy , a sow who happened to find her way to our house one evening.

She was a very energetic pig, as if on a mission. She meandered around a bit, first looking for something to eat, then wisely chose to leave before she too might become eaten! In actuality, we found out she belongs to some neighbors who live down a lane about a quarter of a mile down our road.

For the record, no animals were hurt in the publishing of this post!

Mothers & Fathers

We are "family."
Chappelears & Davises.

So this may be a little late, but mothers and fathers can be appreciated all year, not just on a particular day, right? Right! If it weren't for the people  featured in the picture to the right, my parents (Mike & Berta) are on the left, while Adam's parents (Marty & Al) are on the right. Without our folks, neither of us would be here, and that would be very sad indeed. Our parents have also directed and guided us to the Lord. They each have set examples of what it means to follow Christ and have marriages that honor the Lord. Adam and I are very thankful that both our parents are still together; each couple has actually been married for 25+ years, an amount Adam I hope to reach one day as well!

Mike, Marie, and Berta.

I am so thankful for my parents and in-laws! They are some amazing adults! My parents are my best friends. There's not a thing I could not tell them, if you don't believe me just ask! My parents have always been there to support me and love me no matter what crazy ideas or dumb mistakes I made. I am thankful that have pushed me to always do my best and never, ever give up! Hard work always pays off, and the Lord never leads you astray. Thank you mom and dad for being there for me! You mean the world to me!

Al, Adam, and Marty.

Many people talk about how wonderful married life is, but don't mention too many of the extra things that come along, such as in-laws. I am very blessed to have such a close relationship with my in-laws, I enjoy the honesty and openness that we have with one another. Here's a tidbit for those who don't know the reason we're so close is because when I graduated from college I was looking for experience substitute teaching, and I figured I'd go back home and live with my parents, thus keeping mine and Adam's relationship long distance. Well Marty called my mother and the two of them got to talking and before I knew it, after I had visited before Christmas, I was asked to come move in with them to a) get that experience to help open a door somewhere and b) to be closer to my sweetheart and develop our relationship a bit further. I'm pretty sure we all know that (b) was the reason I went. Despite the case that those were some odd circumstances, I am so thankful for that experience. Marty & Al welcomed me into their house as if I were one of their own, and through that experience I learned a lot about the Davis family that I doubt I would have learned otherwise and vice versa! (Poor Marty & Al didn't know what to do with a loud overly excited girl in the house since they had only boys)! However, with that being said, I highly doubt Adam and I would have been engaged so soon or married had it not been for that experience.

Both of our parents have been extremely supportive of our relationship and each of us feel that the other's parents have done nothing but treat the other as they would their own son/daughter. We are so very blessed to have them in our lives and we hope to one day become the kind of parents they have been to us. It is our prayer that the Lord would bless them doubly even though we owe them more than money or words could ever express. So thank you mom and dad! We love you both! (And yes we hope to bring some grandchildren into this world before too long)!

Just Because

Adam brought these lovelies home one evening after work. He sure did sweep me off my feet! I love it when he surprises me like this, it shows that he's still actively pursuing my heart. I love you, Adam! You're the best husband and I'm so glad the Lord brought us together, I couldn't imagine my life without you! Thank you for everything you do and for being exactly who you are, I'm so in love with you!

Click on picture to view poem!

Tell me about...the inside of your desk?!

Click on picture to view larger!

Yep, you read that correctly! My students last year and this year decided to leave me random notes and messages, and where you might ask? On the inside of my desk of course! I LOVE these messages. The girls that left them for me brightened my day and reminded me why I wanted to teach. Some were funny, most were repetitive in the fact that they all stated they, "loved me" the most. I'm pretty sure the hubbs snuck in there and added a message here and there, too. It made my day to go back and look at these pictures since I had to go to school and clean out my room for summer. Ahh, memories. Happy Monday everyone!

Tick Tock

Have you ever noticed that when you're waiting for God's direction, that the seconds feel like hours, and the minutes like days? I'm in that period of waiting where I'm so anxious to know where the Lord will be sending Adam and I that it is almost unbearable. We've prayed in earnest about an opportunity, that doors would be opened. But we only want His will. As amazing as this job would be, we know that if the Lord's hand is not in it, then we don't want it. There may be some tears on our my end, but I know God's plan is always better. So whether you stumbled upon this blog by accident or you're a continual reader, please just pray over our situation, and especially that my heart would NOT be anxious!

Sewing Endeavor #3: a baby blanket

So a few weeks back, ok almost two months ago, my parents came down for a long weekend when my school had Spring Break. I always love it when my parents can come for a visit, but this time was wonderful because mom and dad hadn't been up in a while, and mom and I were sewing! For some reason, neither one of us can find the motivation to sew unless we're around each other, go figure! I won't drag this out, but I will say that making a baby blanket is so much easier than making baby clothes, well at least a snap-on onesie.

Me with my creation.

To the right is pictured the baby boy blanket I made. It was the first blanket I made it is so far my favorite! I have yet to decide if I want to keep it or give it away. This summer, since I'll have more free time on my hands with school not in session, I'll create a tutorial going step by step through the whole blanket making process. The blanket was soooo soft and comfy, that even the hubbs wanted to take a quick nap! I also created a little girls' blanket for a friend of mine. She didn't want to completely steer away from the color pink, but wanted to incorporate more purples in her little girl's nursery. So keeping that in mind I picked out and created the following (check it out) -------------------------------------->

See you next time for sewing endeavor #4!

EXTRA! EXTRA! Read all about it!

Soooooo good news! Remember how in March I told you that Adam and were praying about a possible job opportunity in Mathews and Bassett? Well unfortunately, Mathew's budget did not get approved for another History teacher and at the time, the teacher that had put in his resignation at Bassett just up and left so they needed somebody to fill the job, quick?! Well praise the Lord, there is another position available now! I received a wonderful tip at the beginning of last week from a source who will remain unidentified and from this person emailed a person they knew in HR (whom I also emailed to confirm my interest) and WAM BAM within 24 hours I received an email stating that a representative of HR would call me to confirm and set up a pre-screening interview! YIPEE!

So in less than a day's time after the email, I received a call and had my pre-screening interview set up for today at 10:00am (I did this because I knew I wouldn't have any "kids" at school with the exception of first block because on odd days I only teach blocks 1 & 5 and my seniors make up block five and they weren't to report to school this week except for graduation practice on Wednesday and Thursday). Sooo thankfully Adam was able to take today off, as was I, and we came out to Bassett over the weekend to stay with my parents. So not only did I have a pre-screening interview, but I got to see the 'rents as well!

Ok so enough blabbering you wanna hear the good stuff! Alright here it is, I walked into HR looking professional with my portfolio in hand ready for whatever they threw at me, and I nailed it! Every question I answered clearly and concisely (probably too fast at first since I was a bit jittery, but more slowly after I settled down)! I feel really good about this interview and I've prayed and prayed that if this is what the Lord wants, then I want it, and if it's not then I don't. So immediately following the interview (and the HR rep didn't leave either) she looked me square in the face and said, "Wow! Well I will most definitely be getting in touch with such-and-such principal because you just passed your pre-screening interview!" I was elated! So I am now waiting to hear back from said principal and hope to have some more wonderful news to share, in the meantime enjoy this beautiful day!

Tell me about......your CHURCH

Lately I've been posting about school, mainly to have an outlet where I can filter my thoughts on the matter and blow off some steam. Other than possibly one or two more posts and I'll be done! Therefore, I've decided to start a few series on "Tell me about...." where I'll post about personal subjects and of course anything you have questions on. I've seen something similar to this on other blogs and figured it'd be good to blog about something new. So feel free to email me or leave a comment. So here goes.: "Tell me about...your Church."

Adam and I attend Redeeming Grace Baptist Church in Mathews, VA. I absolutely adore our church. Ever since I first visited it with Adam, way back in 2008 when we first started dating, I have enjoyed the fellowship with the people there. Their hearts are genuine and their faith is real. It is very much a solid church. Growing up, the denomination my parents raised me in lacked expository preaching and the sermons lasted all of 20 minutes. So needless to say, I became stagnant.  It was until I visited a church in college (very similar to the one we attend now) that I first heard expository preaching. It has captured my heart and left me in awe. I feel that I understand God so much better with this style of preaching and it's helped me greatly in my devotional time as well. I have gotten to know God so much better (that's not to say I'm where I should be in my walk (that's something I strive for daily)) but it is a style of preaching that has opened my heart and I highly recommend it to anyone.

Our church meets on Sunday mornings and evenings and Wednesday evenings for Bible study. The second thing that drew me to our church is the fact that it's very simple. We don't meet in a huge church with stained glass windows, we meet in a rented space that has the bare necessities. The room we meet in is very simple and the focus is simply on worshiping the Lord and delving into His word. I love it! Please feel free to check out our church here and while you're there check out some of the podcasts on some of the series our preacher has been going through (Sunday mornings: Mark, Sunday evenings: Apostle's Creed, Wednesday evening: Matthew).

SOL Finale

Yesterday I got to school skidaddled around to get all my stuff together, wished my students who were re-taking the best of luck and then left to spend my day as a chaperon on the senior picnic trip. The picnic went better than planned and I enjoyed myself a lot more than I did last year. As predicted, my students who hurled threats all week of me getting thrown in the pool, yes that did come true, twice actually! Don't worry, I was prepared and had extra clothes on standby. When the picnic was over, we rode the bus back to school, and then I got the news I had mulled over and stressed out about for two weeks, my SOL results.

I won't drag this out any further or give you any such false inclinations to think the scores were amazing. The truth is, only two out of the ten passed, leaving me with an ultimate 65% pass rate. I did not cry although I felt like it. All I could do was say, amen because had God wanted anything different it would have been. However, I am still human and still somewhat disappointed. I am waiting for my colleagues VSEP binders to return and see if we'll remain accredited in the History Dept. Hopefully *fingers crossed* we will because goodness knows I'd hate for anyone in the state to step in next year. So there you have it, the SOL finale. Now all that's left is graduation and a long enjoyable summer!

Re-take Update

Those students who failed and fall under the re-take category are set to take the test again on tomorrow. I have been working my butt off with these kids since the day we received the results from the first test. I have spent hours making index "flash" card sets for them, one of which (the largest strand of my own personal copy) is now missing. So needless to say, I'm a tad frustrated and ready for this SOL test to be over with.

Despite my ill mood, I am pretty confident that so long as my students have studied the materials I've provided (which they say they have) and remember the information we've reviewed in class, they should do better! I am no longer worried, but I still seem to carry the weight of the stress involved.This has been a stressful week, despite the fact that we had a three day weekend.

Today was "Awards Day" and the entire student body acted foolish, talked too much, and snickered at anything that could produce a chuckle. I was completely mortified and embarrassed when a guest presenter stopped in the middle of announcing her award in order to scold and reprimand our students on their behavior. Today was one of those days I was ready to throw in the towel. I believe it's safe to say that June 17th could not get here fast enough!