Happy Thanksgiving...

to all of my wonderful friends and family! I love you all dearly. Hope you have a great day filled with yummy food and good company! Happy Thanksgiving! ((((((HUGS))))))

Again...I'm still alive:)

I have just had lots going on, and no time to be on the computer. I still have pics to post, but I just haven't gotten around to it. I hope everybody out there is doing good and looking forward to a wonderful Thanksgiving. I thought I'd make a short list of some of the things I have to be thankful for right now.

Family-I have the best family-both on my side, and on Ryan's side
A place to call home
A good job that is very rewarding
The best little doggies in the whole world
The best friends in the whole world-you guys have been nothing but good for me-especially lately:)

Hope everyone is well, and has a good week and lots to be thankful for!!!

yes...I'm alive...

and here are a few of my favorite pics from the past few weekends...I still haven't uploaded the ones from my camera when my mom and I were in osage beach. These are from the past two weekends. The first weekend was in Springfield, and last weekend, I was in Pennsylvania with Rachel. Good Times!!! I hope everyone is doing well, enjoying life, and blogging........

Sorry...

for being the WORST blogger lately! I had two girlfriends come in town over the weekend, then I got sick on Monday, finally a little better today, and flying out to visit my friend Rachel tomorrow....so that's where I've been. I promise I will do better. I have so many pics and stuff to post, just no time to fit it all in...so hopefully next week will slow down...in the mean time, I hope all is well with everyone! Have a great weekend!

Just...

having a low-key night...finally:) Ryan has a program tonight, so I'm home alone...I decided to come downstairs and work...on anything...and I am really glad I did...I have finished a layout that has been sitting on my table for weeks, and now I am almost finished with my November class layout at Scrapbook Generation. This one is just coming together. I love it when that happens. I'm also listening to new music I downloaded a while back, but haven't had time to slow down and actually LISTEN to it...It feels good...I hope you are having a good week...I'm going to go back to work! Maybe I'll get some pics posted tonight...if not, then maybe tomorrow:)

More pics from the OU/Mizzou Game...

Check out the football about to come through the field goal:) Love that!!! I just returned from Lake of the Ozarks today. My mom and I spent a day at the spa on Friday, then we shopped yesterday, returned today:) Gotta love a day at the spa! How I wish I were still there! I will have some pics to post from there too...but right now, I am going to try to catch up on some stuff. Parent/Teacher conferences are this week...lots to do...hope you guys have a great week!!!

Some Game Pics...

Lots more to come...I just uploaded these, and I've got some photo editing to do. I had fun just looking at the pictures and reliving the excitement of the game:) Hope everyone has a great day, and Boomer Sooner!!!

Good Monday Morning...

to everyone! We had a blast at the OU/Mizzou game on Saturday! It was a fast trip. We stopped by my brother's house after the game. My nephew was asleep, so I just got to look at him...no holding:( But at least I got to say hello. It was so good to see him and my brother and Ashley. I have lots of game pictures to post. We had so much fun...and fortunately, we won:) It was one of the best games I have ever been to. It was very exciting, and our seats were fantastic! My cousin played for OU, and we bought his tickets this week. We were in the end zone...just a few feet off the field. I am a little hoarse today from all my cheering. I'll post pics later. Have a great day! Amy

Happy Weekend...

to all my friends out there:) I was so glad to get out of school early today. We got out at 12:30, but I didn't get out of there until 1:30. I ran seven miles at Sequiota today. That is the first time I have gone for a run there in a long time...I forgot how nice it is to run there. It is truly a great place to run. It was so nice because the weather is PERFECT!!! Not too hot, but not too cool either...can't beat that:)

I am sooooooo excited to head to Norman tomorrow for the big game:) Hopefully I will get some great pics to post next week...Until then...Boomer!!!

Tomorrow..

is a half day at school...and it's actually a half day that we get to go home early on:) We normally have professional development on early dismissal days, but this time, we are free at 12:30. Yippee!!! We are headed to Norman Saturday morning for the OU/MU game. And let me tell you....I am super excited!!! ESPN GameDay is there this weekend...so that makes it even better. Boomer Sooner!!! I've been looking for some funniness like I found last week, but have failed to find anything. We just aren't rivals with MU like we are with Texas. And by the way, for those of you who don't know...WE WON THE GAME!!! (This is our arch rival if you didn't know...and they have beat us for the past two years...so now we have the title back again:)I can't wait for some Sooner time this weekend! I just love the loud cheers, tailgating, and excitement that you find in that town.

Let's go Sooners:)

Just a funny in honor of the Red River Rivalry tomorrow:) Boomer Sooner!!!

Sometimes...

life moves too fast, and I feel like I don't soak it all in. I feel like I just go through the motions, and wish for the weekend. Anyone else ever feel like this??? I must say running is helping with that though, especially as I am becoming more in shape-finally. I'm finally to the point that I can run a few miles, and not feel like I am about to die. I did four miles today with my new playlist. Gotta love a new playlist, especially one that works. I didn't skip any songs. I even kept walking through the parking lot where my car was so that I didn't have to turn one off. So maybe my runs will become as long as my playlist is:)

On another note, you guys have read my blogs occasionally when I have mentioned my grandparents. They are just good people who have shaped my life as much as my parents have. There are so many things that I idolize about them. I love that they take care of themselves by eating healthy and exercising. I love that they have always encouraged us to try anything, and to set goals for ourselves. I love that they always encouraged us to compete at something, and supported us in whatever that something was. I wish I could see them more often, and spend time with them. But living away makes that difficult. Some of my best memories of visiting Oklahoma since we moved here were during the time that my parents had a full house, and Ryan and I would stay with my Grandma and Grandpa when we would go home. I hadn't spent the night with them since I was much younger, and it's amazing that warm and cozy feeling that comes from being with them at their house. Okay, I'll get to the point. My Grandpa is very politically active, as I have mentioned in the past. He sent me an email with a link to the Democrats club they belong to so that we could see their float that won first place. As I was looking at the website, I saw this video of my Grandpa doing his rope tricks with some children. Growing up, this was part of every get together, parade, or anything that we were participating in. I used to know how to spin one too, but I can't say that I would be able to do it now if I tried. Anyways, I just wanted to share this video of my Grandpa Jim. It brought back so many warm memories of family and of childhood memories. Click on the link below to see Grandpa in action! And please, no political comments, that is not what this blog is all about. http://pottcountydemocrats.org/Documents/MOV01287.MPG

I'm So Excited....

Right now!!! It is only ten minutes until Grey's Anatomy!!! I have sooooo been waiting for this! Can't wait to see McDreamy and Meredith and McSteamy and Izzie and George and well, the whole cast! I feel like it's been so long since the season ended. I have a casserole in the oven. YUM!!! This feels like fall. Fall is certainly not my favorite season. Afterall, that means I'm back to work, and home from the lake much sooner than I want to be, or not there at all. But there are a few perks about it. These are some of my favorite things about fall:

10) A Routine
9) School-yes-I did say that. (ask me again in April/May)
8) Feeling at home in this house again. (We don't really inhabit it much during the summer)
7) Going to the lake for a nice, calm, relaxing weekend. (The pace down there really changes)
6) Days when you can wear jeans or shorts, long sleeves or tank tops, flip-flops or boots-just whatever you want because the temperature becomes so comfortable.
5) Cooler weather for nice runs and good tv shows after I get home.
4) The changing of the leaves
3) Thinking about all I have to be thankful for right now, and focusing on it.
2) Casseroles and chips and queso and frito chili pies and queso......and
1) COLLEGE FOOTBALL-BOOMER SOONER!!!

Have you ever....

looked at people, and thought, "What are you thinking?" That's what I thought today when I went inside Cheddar's to place a to-go order. I looked over at a table, and here's what I saw:
A table with a single male, and a couple,
The single male was sitting across the table from the couple,
The couple was totally mugging down!!!
I mean they were MAKING OUT!!!
I felt so bad for the man across the table from them.
I would have been so uncomfortable if I were him.

Is there anyone else who totally HATES public displays of affection like this???

Here's me...

doing my thing??? http://www.kspr.com/news/local/9906502.html Click on the link, then hit play, and you'll see me in action. Too funny. I wish I had known I would be on television tonight. I certainly would have dressed nicer, worn more makeup, and had better hair:)

Crazy Day

But it was a good day. The crazy thing is that I am on the news tonight on KSPR 33. My principal asked me if I would like to be on TV. I said sure, then said, hang on, what for??? She laughed, and said an interview about safety in schools-mainly if I think teachers should carry guns in school. So, that's what I'm on the news today about. It is on at 4:30, 5:30, 10:00, and in the morning. Pretty wild!!! I didn't know they would be coming into my room, but they asked if they could, so I let them. My kids were CRAZY!!! You would think they had never seen a camera before. I hope I don't look like an idiot.....Guess we'll see in about ten minutes.

Onto other things. The picture at the top is the card class I did Monday night at Scrapbook Generation. The page below is the page about my ring. I will copy/paste the journaling so you can read it. I really like how all these stamps look. I absolutely loved this paper when I saw it, but had no idea that this is what I would use it for. I feel kind of weird posting this journaling because it's pretty personal, but that's alright. I guess life happens to all of us! So here goes:

Regroup...that’s what I keep having to do here lately. It all started with the loss of my wedding ring. I had no idea how much that symbol meant to me. I mean, I always knew how much I loved my ring. I was never the type of girl to think I would want a new one-ever. That was it. It was the one Ryan had designed-just for me. It disappeared. I sort of started to deal with it, then I realized I don’t have one picture of it. I started to convince myself it was a sign. Maybe Ryan and I weren’t meant to be. It sounds ridiculous, but this has been really hard on me. Then, I had a glimpse of hope for finding a picture. I would find the guy who designed it. I called the place where Ryan got it, and tried to get in touch with the designer, No luck. Ryan found him. However, the building where he had his portfolios stored burned down. Imagine the doubt I started to feel at this point. I had to do some serious self-talk, and I had quite a few cries too.I started having dreams about it, imagining it being hidden in a really strange place at my parent’s house, blaming myself for not keeping up with it, when in fact, I know that isn’t what happened to it. I was miserable, and I really thought my marriage was doomed. I kept thinking if I could just find my ring, everything would be fine. Then, one day, it just occured to me. That ring is not my marriage, it is a symbol of love. I am still in hopes that I will come across a picture of my wedding ring someday, but I am becoming more and more aware that a symbol is a symbol. It is sad to not have it anymore, but I still have the real thing that matters. I have Ryan, and I have our dogs, and I have our life. And that, to me is worth more than any material thing I will ever own. So, I am looking ahead, looking forward to more of our life together. I have the things that matter the most to me. It would be much worse to lose one of those. So, right now, I am still really sad and crushed about my loss, but I have found a way to regroup, change my pattern of thought, and look at all the symbols of love I have in my life.

Happy Wednesday...

to all my friends out there!!! I love Wednesdays. In fact, I think Wednesday might be my favorite day of the week. It means that the weekend is just around the corner, and that makes me smile:) I am so happy today because I have gone for good runs every day this week. I am planning another tomorrow, then rest Friday and Saturday, I think. We'll see how it goes. This is the first week that I have actually felt like I WANT to run. It's been more like a HAVE to for the past few weeks. So that's a good feeling. I also finally feel like we are into our groove at school. It's really the first week that I feel like everything is running smoothly. I taught a class at Scrapbook Generation last night. It was good. I'll have to post pics of the cards we made. They turned out so cute. Ryan and I went for a run this afternoon, yes I said both of us! I think he's gonna run with me on Mondays and Wednesdays. We came home, showered, and now we are off to Chili's to meet his dad and step-mom for Ryan's b-day. We couldn't seem to get together last week, so we are doing it tonight. I am starving after my run, and it feels good to know that I don't really have to worry about what I eat because of all the calories I am burning during those runs. I think that may be my very favorite part of running. I'll try to post pics tomorrow. Hope everyone has a great evening!!!

Another Monday down:)

I hate Mondays, as if anyone who reads this or knows me was wondering:) However, this Monday wasn't too bad. After school, Ryan and I went for a run. he wants to start tagging along. I'm still trying to build up good endurance, and since I haven't been on much of a training schedule, that seems to be harder than usual. So tonight I've been looking at running websites, trying to find a schedule that is not only good, but one that is "doable" for me. Some of them are too much. I think I have committed to a half marathon Dec. 9. I'm nervous, but I know I can do it. I actually trained for one the year before last, but my partner and I missed our run. We thought it was one day, then I got online to register us, and realized we had the date for the previous year. So, needless to say, our training came to a halt. I am looking forward to good long runs, but kind of dreading them at the same time. I guess I look forward to feeling you get after you finish. It's been so long since I've been really running that that feeling seems far away right now. I think I found an eight week schedule I can follow. I will be ready to start it by Oct. 9. That is exactly eight weeks before the run. Here we go!!!

Missing this...

right now:) Our neighbor just emailed us this picture. He was coming in on his boat, and here we all were, just hanging out, enjoying a nice, hot summer day! Ryan and I are in the back on the right side, over by the red ladder. This is our dock, and our awesome lake neighbors/friends:)