Ramblings . . .

Like most young ladies, nothing thrills me more than some good music. Imagine my surprise as my sister's sister-in-law called me and asked if I wanted to go to a FREE concert with her?!?! Free was the key word there...I wanted to go to this concert anyway, but the tickets wer far too expensive for my lifestyle. But luckily for me, her husband has connections AND had to work that night, so that left Sarah with a free ticket! I was so pumped to see George Strait...but especially LITTLE BIG TOWN who I also saw at Mountain Stage with The Davisson Brothers' Band! Nothing says "country concert" like my favorite three things...tight jeans, big hair, and cowboy boots. All day I was dreaming about my evening. *Random sidenote: I have been friends with Sarah since I was in 7th grade and she was in 9th. I have always known just how wild this lady could be, but I though that marriage and two children may have tamed her wild urges..but boy, was I wrong...*

The concert was great, first of all, how could a free concert not be good? And secondly, Little Big Town and George Strait were phenomenal...Everything was smooth sailing until the concert was almost over and my sweet little Sarah, married, mother of two, decided it was necessary for us to sneak onto an elevator leading backstage. I was, to say the very least, extremely hesitant of getting on said elevator. Finally, after some gentle persuasion, by gentle I mean Sarah grabbing my arm and forcibly pulling me onto the elevator, we were riding down to backstage. We quickly enacted a plan, we would simply pretend that we were trying to get to our car in the parking garage and we must have taken a wrong turn. The doors opened and here we were, no cops, no visible security, just a girl at a table. When she asked if she could help us we told her that we couldn't find our car and she sweetly pointed us in the "right" direction, upon which we turned left and waited for George Strait to come off stage. We stood there, waited for about 1 minute and there he was, about six feet from us. He then went back on stage to sing an encore and we hung out with the light crew and pretended like we were supposed to be there...The light crew was privy to certain information, such as "the security guards will take your camera if you try to get a picture of GS" etc. So, me being the rational school teacher says that we shouldn't try to get a picture, just the experience will be enough...but no, Sarah decides she needs a picture and continues to hold my camera in hopes of getting another picture. Well, long story short: he comes back off stage, Sarah gets excited and snaps the picture a little too early, we leave backstage, and then make our way to the car.

Maybe she is a little crazy, my sister would have killed her 10 times over at this point. But that's the Sarah we all know and love. . .

Before: Here I am as a fat cow...I think Tyler looks particularly skinny compared to my face and upper arms that are taking up all of the space in this picture.

Well folks, it's true...I have officially lost some of my belly and bottom...don't worry, it's nothing drastic, but it is 15 lbs, 15.5 to be exact; and on a short person's frame, that's kind of a big deal. Way back in October, I began my weight loss voyage. My loyal readers can also remember my New Year's Resolution to battle the bulge...I have been on, what some may call, a weight loss crusade. I have fluctuated throughout the 4 months on this program, but overall I am excited to see my results; smaller pants sizes, less fat rolls, cheek bones...Some may think that 15.5 lbs is not a lot of weight to lose in 4 months, I may agree to an extent, but it has been hard. I have had to deal with Thanksgiving, Christmas, 5 birthdays, New Year's, the SuperBowl...you name it, I ate during it. I have been trying to follow my weight watcher plan, but it is necessary to cheat sometimes. My sister and I have been using the Wendy method...I think I spelled it right...which is an unsanctioned version of the points system. We basically eat whatever, and I mean WHATEVER we want on Saturdays. We blow our points out of the water and then we "diet" throughout the rest of the week. I placed " " around diet, because I do not feel that WW is actually a diet. I tried the low/no carb thing and I did lose A LOT of weight, but I missed all the food I was cutting out and my roommate, the health conscience dietitian, was in constant disapproval of my diet, which she should be...it was CRAZY! BUT, I gained all that weight back and then some. I guess I finally decided enough was enough and I couldn't handle gaining one more ounce. So today, I may toot my horn just a little because I am proud of me and I am proud of my smaller bum.

I know this is a picture of my bottom...but if you knew me before, you would be amazed at how much smaller I look from the back now!!!

The first step in addiction is realizing that you have a problem.
My name is Amy, and I am an addict.
Caffeine is my drug of choice.
I realize that I have a problem and I am trying to resolve this problem.
I noticed the other day that I consume WAY too much caffeine for a young lady my size! I have decided to quit drinking 3 diet mountain dews a day…Not an easy task considering my first one would almost be finished by the time I got to school. So, I am trying something new. I have completely cut out all the caffeine in my life, except for the tiny m&m’s I sneak when I get home from work. The REAL reason this all started was because Wal-Mart was COMPLETELY out of Diet Mt. Dew when it was 2/$5.00, so this experiment was started out of desperation, not really choice. Now I am just seeing if I can avoid drinking the rest of the day. When someone asked me why I looked so tired I told her I quit drinking caffeine. Her immediate response; “oh, are you pregnant?” she had a slight look of delight thinking about the prospect, however I had to pick my jaw up off the floor to tell her no. Then she wanted to know if we were “trying”…then I told her that we were not and I had to assure her that we were not going to “try” as they say until a while later…I have two nephews that keep me busy enough to lose my mind.
So, I can’t really quit the sauce just yet…but I am getting closer and closer, at least I am down to one caffeinated drink a day. We will see what tomorrow brings. . .

I can't think of anything to write. I can't believe I am about to suggest this to myself, but I am thinking about starting the 26 letters for 26 days thing again. I know, I know...this was the precursor to my blogging demise, but I think it might be wise to get back on that horse. 

Last year I received a special birthday present from my girlfriend Melissa. I opened a small gift bag filled with jewelry from Express, The Limited, NY and Co, etc.  They were all very impressive pieces but I couldn't understand why she gave me all this stuff, everything would have totaled well over $100! She let me in on her secret. Living in Morgantown, the Gabriel Brothers headquarters, we had the inside track on some certain sales. Melis told me that every so often, there were boxes and boxes of broken jewelry delivered to Gabe's and people sifted through it to find matching pieces, individual beads, necklaces, earrings, etc. Well, needless to say, I had to get a piece of this action. I went to Gabe's the following morning and filled up a bag as big as my torso for $10!!! That is when I began bead working in the hopes of simply creating some jewelry to give away to my pals as presents. 

PFFD. It the grand scheme of things...it's probably not that big of a deal, but, in my little corner of the world, it's something we know well. PFFD stands for Proximal Femoral Focal Deficiency. Or, I like to refer to this as "Stumpy McStumperson".

Let's go back a little ways. Not very long ago I ran across this boy that I thought seemed pretty cute, cool, arrogant, whatever you may call him. I really liked him and I wanted to get to know him better until my friend Weslie said, "isn't it crazy when Tyler takes off his leg to go swimming?" Well, imagine my surprise to hear the words "Tyler" and "TAKE OFF HIS LEG" used in the same sentence?!?! What could she POSSIBLY be talking about? After learning about his physical disability, I thought I would just call it quits. I didn't know him that well, we hadn't been out on a date yet, it would be easy for me to make a clean break, or, so I thought. At that point in my life, I honestly thought I was too shallow to date someone with a physical disability. I suppose I was just trying to see me for who I thought I really was, not someone I wanted to be. Nonetheless, I quieted my inner voice and decided to give Tyler a chance--and look where we are now...just a couple years later and we are happier now than we have ever been.

No one really knows what causes this birth defect; all we know is that it is environmental, meaning it is something that the mother has been exposed to during her pregnancy. I think, because he is my husband, that I sometimes take for granted the life he lives. I treat him just like I would anybody else in the world, but I sometimes forget that he is not anybody else in the world. Every time he wants to relax he has to take off his prosthesis, but if he wants to get up to get a drink, he has to put it back on. It malfunctions sometimes and currently is not working correctly which sometimes makes him a little anxious, as it should.

I guess the reason why I am talking about this is to say that my husband is a pretty amazing guy. I make fun of him A LOT, I am his toughest critic ALL THE TIME, but I love him more than anyone in this world ever could. He has done more in his 25 years than most will ever do in a lifetime. He has seen and photographed more of the world that I could ever imagine seeing. He is truly an amazing man that I am proud to be married to...most of the time, JUST KIDDING!!!

ANYWAY-- the REAL reason I am posting this is to tell you why he is so amazing...The other day, my students were reading a story about a little girl with CP (Cerebral Palsy). Our "essential question" for the week was; How do people with physical disabilities adapt to everyday life? Well, who better to talk about this than my husband?!?!? So, my husband came into my classroom full of starry-eyed young women to tell them what life is like without a leg. My girls had the BEST questions and thoughtful responses, one even asked if not having a leg ever made him want to cry...and I could answer that one, sometimes I want to cry. Sometimes he wants to cry. Sometimes, but only sometimes.

I wouldn't change one single thing about my husband. He is my love, my best friend, but most of all, my hero.

I must admit-- I am already feeling a tad neglectful on my resolution to post more on my blog. It seems as though I began reading Nate's blog I have been neglecting mine because I am simply concerned with what is going on with Tricia and Gwyneth. So- if you have not read thier amazing journey through these past few months you must take an hour and a box of kleenex to make it through his beautiful writing.

So, in my haste I suppose I have not told everyone about the home we are preparing to close on shortly. We found this great little home in a neighborhood that we both like, with a great elementary school in walking distance, 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms....and Tyler's favorite part-- the 1/2 of the basement that is unfinished that will soon become his workshop and my "laundry/craft spot"!!! We are SO looking forward to moving, but I am still a little nervous about planning a move becuase there are still many things that could fall through on either end of the sale. We are hoping for the best and I will keep you posted on whatever new developments come around.

We are SO excited to move into a home becuase we will have our own space to entertain. Last night we were so lucky to be able to hang out with some people Tyler works with. It was very nice because we still do not have many friends in Charleston. We are both looking forward to having people over to our home to play games-- especially guitar hero and dance dance revolution (my favorites!!!). Tyler and I are both extremely thankful for his new job because a) he absolutely LOVES it b) he has weekends off!!! (for the most part) and c) he works with AWESOME people! We had such a good time last night, even if neither of us were very helpful at trivial persuit!!!


A picture of the ladies and Phil.


Kelly and me totally enjoying our karoke!!!

Well, it's true. I am going back to school. Yes, I have only just graduated, yes, I am AMAZED at the amount of work I already have, and yes, we are about to buy a home...but, the class is free and what I will learn will definitely benefit my students.

I must say, even though it is a small community college close to home, I still felt a slight buzz inside my belly as I walked the six flights of stairs to the education chair's office to be signed into a class. There were students walking all around trying to get signed into classes and waiting on their classes to begin. I guess it just proves that I love school. Sure, I will probably end up complaining about the class, I will probably dread going some weeks, but the fact of the matter is, I love learning. I love everything about learning. I love the excitement of going into something that you know nothing about only to come out on the other end full of great things to try in your very own classroom.

Thinking back to the beginning of summer, the last thing I wanted to do was even think about school. I didn't even want to go down the path of teaching. The last 5 years leading up to my master's degree was just overkill. I was basically over teaching for a while. It wasn't until I was working in my "summer job" (which I greatly loved) that I realized how much I missed teaching or being in school. Towards the end of August I realized I wasn't going to have my own classroom this year, I wasn't going to welcome students into a new year, and more poignant for me-- I wasn't going to have a first day of school. For the first time in over 15 years, I wasn't going to have a first day of school. Thus began the search for a new job.

I had some interviews set up, I had different leads taking me down different paths. I could have gone to kindergarten, pre-school, third grade...all of these jobs were open, but none of them really felt like they fit. I was just about to settle as a job in a kindergarten classroom as an extra teacher to accommodate an overage of students when I drove past the school. My only goal was to go inside and tell the principal that I had applied for his job, but I thought I should take a job elsewhere...Until I heard the story of what seemed like it could be titled, the little school that could. This school seemed like it was on the up and up; teachers that really cared, high expectations for the students, technology integrated into many aspects of the classroom. I left the school that day feeling so whole and complete- like I had finally found my home. I went straight to my dad's office to tell him about my interview experience. As I was second guessing my feelings he said the most important thing to me that I could have ever heard. He said, "Amy, can you imagine how you would feel if you had a part in one of those girls going to college?" and this really did it for me. These students are incredibly underprivileged, I can't imagine that we only live across the river from them because it seems as though we are worlds apart. My father's words have stuck with me after he told me a similar story from his beginning teaching job. He reminded me that although we may get frustrated with our students, we, as teachers may be all the students really have. I try to remember this every day when I get what seems like 10,000 stories about what's going on in their lives. I try to patiently listen and respond because I may be the only person these girls have to talk to.

I began working shortly there after and to say it was an tough road may be the understatement of the century. I was COMPLETELY out of my element. I didn't have a lot of experience in split classrooms, NO experience in split-gender classrooms, and NO experience in 4th grade. The only thing that I really knew was that they were students in need of a teacher and I would figure out a way to be the person they needed.

It would be easy to fall in love with kindergartners, little helpless things running around all day...but for me, it was just as easy to fall in love with my girls. Who would think I could love these 16 girls that are just on the edge of becoming sassy tweens? We have found common ground to stand on and I look forward to everyday I have with them. I worry about them when they aren't at school, I rejoice when they FINALLY understand something I have been telling them for the past 9 weeks, and I love when they come to me and let me know how much I mean to them. We are a little family on the third floor, and for this family, I can go back to school.

I can't really think of anything to talk about...SO, I will share this bit of good news.

I was teaching today and I had a phone call-- with good news for ONCE! Our mortgage officer phoned me today to let me know that our interest rate has gone from a 5.88% fixed for 30 years to 5.58%!!! It may not end up being that much of a difference, buuuuut for us, every little bit counts!

I will try to think of something to post later...

Here is a list of 13 things I would like for my birthday...it's coming up...on Sunday...
Some are very expensive and are just things I want, not that I expect to get...some are little things that I probably don't need...and some are things to get my new home *hopefully* set up!!!

1. This lil jewelery case in "daisy daisy"

2. This workcenter for my soon-to-be new home

3. Basically anything vera bradley in daisy daisy

4. These great lil tongs that go with my kitchen scheme

5. I do enjoy pizza...so this would be pretty cool

6. I've never used one of these before, but they are super cool.

7. And I thoroughly believe in angled spatulas for icing cakes

8. I think these are snazzy--but who knows if I would ever use it...

9. I neeeeeed this in my life.

10. Some more of this from the mall.

11. Of course I wanted this...and my husband got it for my EARLY birthday!!!

12. Ahhhh....my dreeeeeam!

13. This would be good to help me keep track of one of my resolutions.