10 Things to Smile about May

I ended up skipping April since I consumed myself with the A to Z Challenge and my life was quite BUSY during April.  Well, May has been just as busy as April (if not busier), but I am totally missing my blog so I found some time to write about May.  I don't know if I will be able to only write 10 since May was so full of awesome things!  Once again, thanks Emmy Mom for the inspiration!  You can find her here ---> EMMY MOM

1. Mother's Day

I visited my mom at both of my grandmother's homes.  This is a picture of my maternal grandmother's front yard.  It is full of pinwheels!  All the little ones were out there mesmerized by them!  I do not have little ones because my children are about grown.  However, I did enjoy the fun spirits of my nieces and baby cousins running through the yard of pinwheels! 

2. Taco Cupcakes!

These were made with love by my sister in law for my brother and nephew's birthday.  My sister in law is a VERY creative person.  I need to tell her to get a blog! 

3. 5th graders visit the local University!

I want our students to have the experience and exposure to college.  The students at my campus are not ones that may consider college an option.  I wanted to plant a seed in their minds to make it an option. So, I set up the visit.  

4. My niece visits her new school! 

I went with my sister to take my niece on her first visit to her new school where she will get to learn in two languages!  

5. My friend graduates from college!

I was so proud of my friend Dori.  She is married with 4 daughters.  She had a tough struggle getting through different life obstacles including having to care for her family and her mother.  She overcame those obstacles and obtained her bachelors degree!  Nothing like a girl who does what it takes to accomplish her goals!

6. Educational Bosses Day!

I love receiving fresh flowers!  These came from my wonderful staff as well as a gift card for a massage! :) Loved it!

7. My husband! 

I love how photogenic he is! :)

8. My beautiful children!  

This was taken the night my son attended his 8th grade dance.

9. This saying on Pinterest I found. 

I am trying to figure out what to place this saying on to give it to my husband for Father's Day.


10. And my country song of the month..Kenny Chesney's new one "Come Over."  He is my all time favorite country artist, but I do have many others I love!




**Bonus:  I finally did my first Walk!  It was a 3 mile walk to raise money for high school scholarships.  It was a tough walk, but I did it and am looking forward to more!  I didn't get to take any pictures though unfortunately.  I suppose I can cross this off my "list" of things to do. :)

I hope your May was as fun filled as my May.  Now to finish our last week of school.  I can't wait!  Like I have mentioned, it will be bittersweet-but I just can't wait for summer break to begin!  I need the downtime-which will lead to me blogging more frequently! :) 

   

Family Fun Weekend

We enjoyed a great weekend with family and friends at the beach.  We started early and camped out.  It was a very nice and relaxing weekend.  Some of the glimpses of the day are here.  I didn't get too many photos because my camera messed up on me while we were there.

My son rides a friend's jetski for the first time.

My niece after a day of fun.

Our wonderful friends-The Castros

My husband and I making faces.

Yes, he is still making faces. 

Okay...here we go...all smiles.

The girls hanging out.

S'more time with the kids is always the icing on the cake at evening time.  

I hope your weekend was a fun one too!  It is always a great one when we get together with family and friends.  Look out for 10 Things to Smile about May tomorrow!  Lots of good things to be thankful for in May.

Mommy Daughter journal

My daughter came across this journal today. She told me she had been reading it. When I saw it, it looked very familiar. It was the journal she and I used to write each other when she was in middle school! I started it by writing an entry introducing the journal to her and how we can use it. Then I would go and place the journal on her bed or somewhere in her room after I made an entry. She'd read it and respond back with her thoughts. The journal was only intended for her and my eyes only. This made it comfortable for her to feel free to write how she wished. Sometimes I would leave her with a question to answer or sometimes I would just tell what was on my mind and she did the same. We kept it for almost a year. Oh how I miss those moments!

My daughter is about to turn 21 this summer and my has the time flown by! Now my son will be entering high school and in 4 more years (with God's will) he will be graduating! Someone please take the battery out of the clock for a moment!

8 1/2 days and now counting...

I am reaching the end of the school year and boy has it been a year. First time around as the "big chief" and I was on a roller coaster ride all year long. One of my superiors said to me a few days ago "you made it....you survived!" I tell her ssshh...don't say that too loud just yet. We still have two more weeks! Ha! Let's just say if it was going to happen, it did...that was my inner self motto this year. Things are still going on and I have a story for just about every week! I must say the j-o-b was a lot more than I expected, however nothing that I couldn't handle with my weekend downtime and prayer. All in all, I really do love where I am and wouldn't change it for the world. I have lots of plans and goals to reach and I will just take each year one at a time. :)

So, there are 8 1/2 days left and I just started counting today. I know I should be glad that it is almost over, but in a sense it's a bittersweet time. I can't say..."I'm a rookie" any longer. It's like I'm fully responsible now! Haha! No excuses! Not that I ever really gave any, but it was still the card in my back pocket I could pull out during extreme emergencies?! So, what do I do with my last 8 1/2 days???? A whole heck of a lot!!!

Movie theme Inspired!

I'm getting things ready for next year's back to school staff development and our theme is movies. I have been searching the net for ideas on decorations, organization, and such. I also need a really nice slogan/motto educational phrase for the year. I need help! Most avid bloggers (aka you:) are quite the creative bug. I'd love to hear any ideas you have! :)

Working mom vs. Stay at home mom

I know this is can be a controversial subject to some, however it simply is a matter of preference, desire, and sometimes necessity.

This morning I was listening to my local radio station and a stay at home mom called in to say she felt that working moms did not deserve to have the celebration of Mother's day as stay at home moms do. I was like...what??

Now, before I go on let me state... I have nothing against stay at home moms. I was one as a matter of fact! I had the fortunate luxury of being able to stay at home with my son for two years when he was born. It was one thing I did in my life that I would never regret and will be forever grateful for having the opportunity. However, when I was in high school, I had goals I wanted to reach. So, I set forth on accomplishing them after my son turned two.

Back to the woman who called in to the radio station... what made her feel she had the right to put down women who worked? She had the audacity to claim women work to feed their own egos. Again, I was like... What?! Why can't women just respect each other and the decision they make or perhaps in some situations have to make so that they live the life they choose to live. Neither choice of mom is more deserving of recognition then the other. Each have their own rewards as well as their own sacrifices.

I wanted to ask this woman whether she took her children to any female doctors? Were any of her children's teachers mothers? Does she honestly feel the world would be a better place if only men worked in the real world? We need a world of all kinds of people.

I respect both. I don't believe one is harder than the other. I just have a respect for all moms. Being a mom alone is a tough job. We have lots on our plate at all times and it seems like the job never gets done. However, I would never trade my job as a mom with anything else. It is a precious gift that I was given...almost 21 years ago. It is a blessing.

Happy Mothers Day to ALL mothers! May your day be showered with love and some pedi/manis! :)

Feedback

So, my intentions were good. Unfortunately, A to Z kicked my butt! I was unable to complete the challenge. I did reach all the way to S though so that was quite a bit. April was such a tough month at work and daily life matters consumed my month. Needless to say, I will be back to regular blogging as usual. Glad to have met new friends along the way. That my friend was the icing on the cake from the challenge. :)