Peace on Earth December Challenge

thanks·giv·ing: –noun
1. the act of giving thanks; grateful acknowledgment of benefits or favors, esp. to god.
2. an expression of thanks, esp. to God.
3. a public celebration in acknowledgment of divine favor or kindness.
4. a day set apart for giving thanks to God.

Every year we set a part a day to give thanks. We gather with family and friends and readily share what it is we are thankful for. This day, like all others, only last 24 hours. Sure you may spend several days gathering for the occasion, but it still only a very short time of your week, month, year, and life time.

Our Father tells us in 1 Thessalonians to give thanks in all circumstances.

I wonder how many of spend that one day in November giving thanks, but then turn around and spend what is commonly referred to as Black Friday griping about the crowds, long lines, and slow traffic.

As Christians, giving thanks should not be something we reserve for one day of the year. It should be something that we do daily, hourly, even minute by minute.

I don't know about you, but it seems like as soon as Thanksgiving is over my calendar can be overwhelming. Between work and preparing for Christmas, I'm swamped. It is very easy for me to get stressed out. I struggle to stop and thank God for all the things he allows me to do. Even more, I forget to stop and ask God what it is that He wants me to do. What things should not be on my calendar?

I say all this because my two do list is already overwhelming. It's way past my bed time tonight and my to do list for tonight alone is no where near finished. At some point I have to make myself stop and let the rest wait until tomorrow.

Courtney, over at Women Living Well, understands what a busy schedule can do to us women. It affects us emotionally and spiritually. She has a challenge for the upcoming weeks to help us remember to just stop and enjoy this time of year. She challenges us to stop and spend time with our Savior giving him thanks and asking for him to continually be a part of our every day lives.

Because she realizes that this has an affect not only on us, but everyone around us, she is calling this particular challenge the Peace on Earth December Challenge. Due to his work schedule, my time with the husband this month is going to be VERY limited. I want to make sure that I'm a wife who encourages him and lifts him and not one that is a thorn in his side. I do not want ot be like annoying constant dripping on a rainy day (Proverbs 27:15).

Go over and check out Courtney's challenge. She has a video telling you more about it.

Happy Thanksgiving

Another Thanksgiving has come and gone. I'm still somewhat in awe at how this particular holiday has changed as I have gotten older. When I was little Thanksgiving was as big of a deal as Christmas to me. It's not that way anymore. It doesn't seem like Thanksgiving is this big hoopla anymore.

I had a two day work week this week which was SUPER nice. I'm truly enjoying this five day break. Things have just been so crazy busy. It's nice to just stop for a brief moment.

Wednesday I spent the day running errands. I had to pick up everything I needed to take to our two Thanksgiving gatherings. Why I wait until the day before to go to Wal-Mart is beyond me. It was of course crazy in there. You just have to be patient and kind. You can't be in any kind of hurry. I even went to Wal-Mart twice because as soon as I was back in my car and on the interstate after the first trip, the husband called and informed me I need to go back.

Wednesday evening we had dinner with the husband's family. I ran out without my camera. As soon as Jill post some pictures, I will steal them and share with you.

I did manage to take two picture with my phone.

My family always has chicken & dumplings on Thanksgiving. In fact, I dare say that it is the main course, not the turkey. My sweet husband does not understand this at all and absolutely refuses to eat dumplings on Thanksgiving. I have been counting down the days to my dumplings all week on facebook. When we arrived at Jill's Wednesday night I was surprised and absolutely delighted to find that my sweet mother-in-law, Belinda, made me chicken & dumplings. Didn't I tell you I had the best in-laws? They were very good!

And this is me and my sweet niece, Millie. Though I know this girl can smile with the best of them, she is always so solemn around us. Guess that is what happens since she isn't around us all the time. :(


Yesterday morning (Thanksgiving) we got up and headed to Batesville to spend the day with my family. More chicken and dumplings!!! We spent most of the day there. I really enjoyed the time. I actually took a few pictures there, but you will have to wait until later. I can't find my cable to get them off my camera.

I got up this morning around 7:30. I like to go out, but I don't want to get up crazy early. There isn't anything I really need that badly, but I can't seem to just stay home either. I managed to score a few good deals and was home by 10. I picked up a Christmas present for the husband that was unexpected, but I couldn't resist. I'm actually excited about his Christmas this year. He is so hard to buy for because he likes things that I know nothing about (tools & electronics) and is very particular. He also just doesn't get excited about gifts the way I do. But this year, I have a couple of things that I think he is really going to like.

I bought a few things for me to. I have recently discovered that I love jeans from New York & Company. They normally run between $45 and $50. I'm sorry, but I just can't pay that for jeans. But I got a pair for 60% off this morning so I was pretty excited.

Now I'm home resting while I can. The husband is about to put me to work. I just want to get the tree up, but he wants to do home improvement projects. UGH!!

Ready for tomorrow. Big day! My Hogs take on LSU for the boot!

WOOOOOO PIG SOOOOOOIE!!!


Oh and can I just say that today is my Momma's birthday!!! She is the best. Love you Momma!!

Picking The Perfect Card

It is cold outside. Not freezing temperatures cold, but cold enough. It actually feels like fall outside today and I love it! It puts me in the mood for all the upcoming holidays.

I love everything about this time of year. I love the time I get to spend with my family, the food that I smell and eat, the hustle and bustle of it all, the decorations, and that happy feeling you get.

While it is hard for me to believe that Thanksgiving is just right around the corner, I'm ready. I'm even more ready for Christmas.

One of my many favorite things about Christmas is the Christmas cards. I love to pick out our Christmas card and I love to receive Christmas cards. I think my card list gets longer and longer every year. It's great!

Each year when I take my cards down I immediately get them into a scrapbook. It's fun to see how families grow and change from year to year. I just started doing this in 2008. I can't wait until I can look back at Christmas cards that are I received a decade ago. I think it will be so neat.

I've been planning our Christmas card for this year since late September/early October. You see it starts with the perfect location for our photoshoot. Then I move to outfit choices.

All that is taken care of. I am so pleased with how our pictures turned out this year. I have several that I absolutely love! While I'm not 100% sure which one(s) will grace our card, I have a few that are in the running. I'm still waiting on the husband's opinion.

I've been searching for the perfect card. I have an idea of what I want in my head, but I haven't quite found it yet. I've thought about designing the card myself this year. I've played with that some, but am not leaning to that route yet.

I recently learned that by telling you all about shutterfly, I could get 50 free cards so I check out their website. OMG. They have so many cute cards!!!

Here are just a few from their site that I like. What do you think?





You too can get 50 free Christmas cards. Just hop on over to their site to check out this awesome deal. They have so many cute cards to pick from.

Bloggy Makeover

I'm ready for a new look for the old blog. I've done the past two myself and I guess they've been okay, but I'm ready for a professional job. I've been out there looking at all the different designers trying to decide what way I will go.

In the midst of that I stumbled across Little Sailor Design. She has done some really cute designs. And even better she is hosting a giveaway right now. You can enter to win a free blog makeover. Go to her blog to check it out.

I of course am hoping to win, but am leaning towards choosing her to do my makeover even if I don't win. But here's hoping. :)

Never Say Never

A few months ago, I had the opportunity to attend "A Night With The Chapmans." I really enjoyed every minute of it, but I especially enjoyed hearing Mary Beth speak. That night she shared with us something she had written in her book. She told us there were three things she told God she would never do:
homeschool,adopt, & speak in public.

God has walked her through all three of those things now. After she finished telling us those three things she looked at her husband, Steven Curtis Chapman and told him she would NEVER spend 6 months on vacation in Hawaii with him. Of course we all laugh.

I wonder how many times God has laughed and will laugh because we've made our own plans. We've said we will definitely do something or we will never do something.

Growing up I always wanted to be a teacher. I don't think there has ever been a time in my life that I didn't want to teach. I have always been very specific in what I would teach. I wanted to teach history and english. I said I would NEVER teach math or science. I hated them. Do you know what I teach this year? Yes. Math & Science. And truth be told, I love it!!! Even more than history and english. God knew that.

I've said time and time again that I could NEVER be married to a truck driver or someone in the army or anyone else who was away from home all the time. I just didn't have it in me to be that wife. Well, I'm not married to a truck driver and I'm not married to someone in the army, but I'm married to the IT guy of a lumber company. Right now that means I'm married to someone who travels a lot. And you know what? God has not only walked me through that, but he has used to strengthen my marriage.

I'm sure there are plenty of other things I said I would never do because I couldn't and God has walked me through it anyways. Math, Science, and a traveling husband, are just the two that are prominent in my mind right now.

I am so thankful that God knows better, that his ways are higher. I'm thankful for the reminder that I'm not in control. He knows what He is doing and doesn't need my help.

What is something you said you would never do that God has walked you through anyway?

My New Toy

Last night, Andrew and I bought me a new phone. I asked around before making a decision on what phone I wanted and everyone told me the iPhone was the best. I just didn't want an iPhone. I don't dislike them. I just wanted something different than everyone else.

I went with a new Windows 7 phone. The Samsung Focus. The phone I had was a Samsung and I really liked it.

Other than a few frustrations, I really like the focus. The moron at the AT&T store deleted all my contacts. GRRRR!! It has been a very frustrating process. I don't even know what numbers are missing because I had so many. I've been trying all day to get some of them back. Between the husband and my Momma, I got a few.

It really is a neat phone though. I'm enjoying playing with it. I was so behind in the world of cell phones. It just amazes me that when someone calls, their facebook picture pops up.

Aww.. the little things!

My only other complaint is that because it is so new (just came out Monday) I can't download any ringtones. At least I can't figure how to. The ones it came with totally stink. I like just a normal ringtone that sounds like a phone is ringing. This phone doesn't come with a single ringtone like that.

I'm sure there is a way to get a ringtone. I just still have lots to learn.

Fighting the Static

After looking at our photos from Saturday, I've decided to keep my hair long. At least for now... I just really like the way it looks in the pictures. I'm going to keep going with the way it is, at least until next month. I might do something different over Christmas break.

But, I have a daily battle with static. Actually it's an hourly battle. I don't know what to do to tame the static. I've been known to carry a sheet of fabric softener in my purse. That works well.

I'm thinking there has to be some hair product out there for this little problem. I haven't even looked. Do you know of anything?

Every morning after I straighten my hair, I look like I've touched that big ball they have in museum. You know...the one that purposefully makes your hair stand on end.

Finishing Strong

So today is the last day of Katie's 30 day challenge. I've enjoyed it, but am ready to post about whatever again. The last challenge is to share a picture. It's perfect timing. I can share with you just a few of the 80 something shots from our photo shoot this past weekend. Uncle Kevin got some great shots. I don't know how I will ever pick just one. Let me know which one is your favorite.

Wishes

I can't believe we are almost finished with this 30 day challenge. What will I blog about when it is over?

We are sharing our wishes today.

My wish today is just that God would use me to share Christ with others and that they would accept Him.

On a selfish note, I wish we were debt free! We are getting there, but sure is a slow process.

Showing My School Spirit

This week is Homecoming Week at School. That means we are dressing up each day.

As Student Council sponsor, I'm responsible for coming up with the dress up days for middle school. Well not really me so much as my kids. I find ideas and then they vote.

However, they don't get a choice on Monday. It is one of my favorite days of the year. Monday is always Get Up & Go Day. That means I get to wear my pjs and houseshoes to school. I LOVE IT!!

Tuesday is Twinkie Day where you and a friend dress alike. I bought a shirt that says something about Twinkies that I'm going to wear. I think two of my coworkers are going to wear the same thing.

Wednesday is Nerd Day. I will be sporting the same outfit as last year. Nothing new here.

I'm struggling with Thursday. It is Celebrity Day. Dress like someone famous. I have NO IDEA what I should do. I would like to come up with something clever that will make my kids think. But I don't want to be someone or something that they will never figure out. Anyone have any ideas? I'm willing to go buy "supplies" but I would like to find something easy & cheap.

As always, Friday is Cardinal Day. I will be wearing school colors.

And don't worry. I will share pictures!

I really enjoy this week. The students love that I dress up and I love that they love it. :)

It's a crazy week though. This week always challenges my classroom management skills, which is a little scary. This year they are already being challenged enough.

Here's to a week of fun!!

LB Squared & Stress

Catching up! I'm going to do yesterday's challenge and today's challenge here in hopes of getting caught up on something.

Yesterday's challenge was all about the pets. My pets are more than just pets. They are my babies. Yesterday we did our annual photo shoot and it was strange to only do a few pictures with them. They have graced every Christmas Card since they came into our family.

Liberty Belle Weaver is our first "child". Her name has a story behind it that you can read all about here. She has been a wild and crazy adventure from day one. She has destroyed walls, carpet, baby gates, pillows, and many other things. And when I say destroy, I mean truly destroy. We had to get rid our our carpet because she ate through one day, foam pad and all.

But I love her! She's my girl. She is my little brown shadow. She never likes to be too far from her Momma. On the rare occasion that Andrew comes homes before me and lets them in, she immediately starts looking for me.

She absolutely hates to ride in the car. It stresses her out. She wants to be in the driver's lap and she spends the entire time panting and shaking like crazy.

She hates to wear clothes, but loves her blanket. We can say, "Lib get your blanket and go to the night night." and she will grab her blanket and go to our bedroom.

She can jump higher than any little dog I've ever seen. She clears the couch no problem. She has jumped from the floor onto the dining room table and even from the floor onto the kitchen counter. She jumped onto the counter because I was sitting on it crying. She doesn't like it when I cry.

She is my back cuddling puppy. We sleep on the same pillow with our backs against each other.

She is absolutely crazy, but I love her.

Liam Bailey is the total opposite. He is so sweet and cuddly. He loves to just come and lay on your chest and bury his little head into your neck. He will cuddle with just about anyone. He loves to make new friends.

He is a dog's dog. He LOVES the car. If I say I'm going bye bye he gets all excited and runs to the front door. He walks out and jumps straight into the car. I roll his window down and he is as happy as he can be. But I leave without him, he is not a happy camper. Andrew says he will cry the entire time I'm gone.

He is a Momma's boy. He is scared of everything. The slightest little sound and he takes off running to his bed. He is our snoring puppy. He sleeps on his bag, paws out in front of him and just snores away. It is so cute.

Liam loves to wear clothes. He comes running whenever I pull out one of his shirts. It is so funny! I think it is because he is a cold nature little dog. He prefers to be cuddled up next to someone or under a blanket.

I love my furbabies! They drive me crazy at times, but I don't know what I would do with out them.


As far as today's challenge goes....being behind, like I am now, is what gets me stressed out. When I feel like my to do list is far longer than what I could ever get done in the allotted time frame gets me stressed out. Paperwork can get me feeling a little overwhelmed. Most of the time I just look at Drew with my long to do list and let him know I'm feeling overwhelmed and that I need his help. He can always tell when I'm to THAT point and he will help me however he can. He's great like that!!



On a totally different note. We finally did pictures yesterday as I mentioned above. I can't wait to see them. I think Uncle Kevin got some good ones. He always does. But, these pictures have been the reason I haven't cut my hair yet. That excuse is gone. Now I have to decide if I'm brave enough, really ready to cut my hair. We shall see!

We Are Family!!

I LOVE my family. I couldn't have asked for a better family to be born into or a better family to marry into. God has truly blessed me with an amazing family.

Yesterday, Katie asked us to share pictures of our family. You should be warned now, this post is going to have a LOT of photos.

Let's start with my immediate family. If you have been reading this blog for very long you know all about me, the husband, and the furbabies. Andrew is absolutely my best friend. He is an amazing man who loves me than I deserve, even when I'm not easy to love. He is incredibly smart and talented. He works so hard to provide for me. He doesn't look too bad either. :) Miss Liberty Belle will always be my first child. She has taught me more about patience than I could ever share with you in one post. Liam Bailey is my sweet cuddly boy. He has taught me that my heart has room for two puppies. :) I'll share more about them in today's challenge which will be all about them.

As for the family I was born in to.... My Momma is my best girlfriend. We are so much alike that it is scary at times. I can cry my heart out to her about anything. I love to hang out with her every chance I get. I so wish they lived closer. My Daddy is just that...my Daddy. I definitely think of him like every little girl should think of her Daddy. He's my hero. He loves my Momma and works hard to take care of us. In my eyes, he can do anything. Seth, my sweet baby brother. I love the young man he has become. He is so sweet although I think he tries to hide that at times. He is so much fun to hang out with. I cherish the time I get to spend with him. I know that when God sees fit, he is going to make a wonderful husband.

The In-Laws.....That really isn't the right term. In-laws has such a negative connotations in today's world. I hear so many jokes and stories about how awful the in-laws are. I just feel sorry for those people and so thankful that God blessed with the perfect in-laws. They are my family. I love them dearly. Daddy & Momma Weaver are wonderful. They love me like one of their own. I could share story after story of times when they have made me feel loved.

I grew up with just the one brother. when I became Mrs. Weaver, I gained a whole big crew of brothers and sisters. And I LOVE it.

Andrew's oldest brother, Chris is married to Kerri. Kerri has two daughters, Kacie & Kaitlyn, and they have Kandace. They are a beautiful family that we enjoy hanging out with.

Andrew's older sister is Jayna. She is married to Tony. They have three kids, Jessica, Waylon, & Joylyn. They are such a sweet family. I think of them as the quiet ones. I'm not sure a quiet Weaver even exist, but they are as close as it gets. :) We don't get to see them nearly as often as we would like.

Next in the line up is Joy and her husband Gerry. They have the three boys, Tyler, Cody, & Pryce. Joy and Gerry are such a godly couple! I love to spend time with them. I always leave filling a desire to know God in a more intimate way. We love the boys too! Andrew loves to hang out with them and play ball.







Jill is married to Alex. They have sweet little Amelia. Jill is very near and dear to my heart. She is the sister that scared me when I first started dating Andrew. :) She loves her family and you just don't mess with that. Alex is Andrew's boss so they of course spend lots of time together. And Miss Amelia...Well you know what we think of her. I get to hang out with her Tuesday evening and to say I'm looking forward to it would be a huge understatement.

Last but not least is Cary. Cary is married to Sara and they have Jackson & Millie. Cary is probably Andrew's best friend. They are two years apart and as far as I can tell have always been close. Andrew really looks up to Cary. I can't tell you how many times we've been debating a decision about this or that and Andrew has called for Cary's opinion. Sara is a lot of fun too. And creative!!! That girl could make anything. Jackson and Millie....I miss getting to see them on a regular basis. Jackson is a hoot! Millie is just as sweet as she can be. She celebrated her 1st birthday today. Millie, Uncle Andrew and I wish we could have been there. We love you sweet girl!!

So that's the family! I can't say enough about how much I am truly blessed to have each and everyone one of them as my family.

So Far Behind....

I have been so far behind this week. Missing school is hard on a teacher. In fact, I think it much harder to miss work than to be there. I have spent this week getting caught up on the three days I missed last week. That has only served to put me behind on this week.



I'm even behind on my blogging. My Internet decided to quit working this week. So frustrating. It always seems to do that when my IT guy of a husband is one the road. He literally walked in tonight and had it working in about 2 seconds. Love that man!!



Wednesday's challenge over at Katie's blog was to share something we have learned. Hmmm.... What have I learned that is worth sharing. The one thing that comes to mind is something I'm still working to put to practice. Happiness is a choice. I'm the only person that gets to decide if I'm happy or not. No one else gets to determine how I react to any given situation. Life can stink at times, but it is my choice and my choice alone how I respond to the people around me and the circumstances. I can look to anyone else for my happiness. At least not anyone on this Earth.



Thursday's challenge was the iPod Shuffle. We're supposed to put our iPods on shuffle and list the first ten songs that play. I've been looking forward to this challenge. I have a ton of stuff on my iPod and a pretty big variety. I'm curious to see what songs pop up. I'm going to cheat a little. I have three or four versions of the Bible on my iPod. I'm going to skip when those come up and just do the first 10 SONGS that play.

1. Ooh La La by Rod Stewart
2. Take it All by Hillsong United
3. Get Rhythm by Joaquin Phoenix
4. Dive by DC Talk
5. We Belong Together (Tarzan & Jane) by Steven Curtis Chapman
6. Cry for Love by Michael W. Smith
7. Cheers (TV Themes)
8. Perfect Strangers (TV Themes)
9. Every Little Thing by Hawk Nelson
10. El Shaddai by Travis Cottrell

There you have it....Interesting Mix.


I'll finish getting caught up this weekend. The husband is home, but just for the weekend. Our only plans are pictures tomorrow. We are going to take it easy and just rest from our weeks.

I've Got The Fever!

It actually feels like fall outside today. I walked out of school and was hit by this wonderfully cool weather. Then it started misting. It was perfect. Felt like fall.

But this kind of weather does something to me. As soon as I got in my car I put on my Christmas music.

Yes, you read that right.

I stand firm in my belief that it is never to early for Christmas music. I had to listen to "Baby It's Cold Outside" by James Taylor. LOVE IT!!

I wanted to come home and curl up with a bowl of chili and a good book.

Instead I came home had a grilled ham & cheese (which was very yummy) and curled up with a huge stack of papers that needed to be graded. :) Missing three days last week is kicking my fanny.

I have to miss to class periods tomorrow afternoon too. I made a dentist appointment because I've had a toothache since Saturday. You know it hurts if I'm voluntarily going to the dentist. If you know me at all you know that I despise the dentist. I cry every time I have to go, even for just a teeth cleaning. I'd rather get a pap smear every day of my life than to ever have to go to the dentist. I hate it that much.

Hopefully there isn't anything too major that is causing this awful toothache.

Since I've already wondered off from my original thought, I'll go ahead and throw in today's challenge from Katie. She is asking us to share our favorite vacation.

That's a toughie! Any vacation is a good one in my opinion. I have loved all of our vacations for different reasons. I have to say that I really loved DC. It was the first vacation Andrew and I took by ourselves since our honeymoon. It was a lot of fun and educational too!!

30 Days: My Favorite City

I'm a country girl at heart. I don't think I would ever want to live in the city. So....my favorite city is one that was fun to visit.



Washington DC