It's Not Goodbye

Goodbyes are never easy. Whether it's your dad leaving to go live somewhere else, your uncle moving out west, your dog dying unexpectedly, or a family that's very special to you moving out of state, it's never easy to see the ones you love the most go away, even if only for a little while. How do you say goodbye to people who have had so much influence in your life? These people are very special. You see, they aren't just church family for us, they're real family! To a guy who I will always see as my youth pastor, who helped me learn to grow in and understand God's word through the most critical years of my life, a guy who has had more influence than he will know over his nephew (my husband), I hope you gain so much knowledge through school and your mentors and that you grow as a leader. To a sweet woman who has been a mentor and great friend to me beginning in my early teen years, who when I first met I thought of as a big sister, a woman who I've seen go through many things and have learned from how to trust God in hard situations and praise Him for his blessings, I hope you are refreshed through spending time with your family and that God teaches you many things during your time up north. To a kind-hearted little boy who Adam nicknamed 'No-Man', who was his parents' first blessing and is the sweetest, most well mannered child, very caring, but all boy, who I've watched learn and grow from birth, I know you will do very well in your new school, you will make many friends because you are so sweet and easy to get along with. I hope you learn so much, be nice to your teacher! :) Take care of your brother and sister, and don't get too tall! To two little "babies" who will always be just that to me, M&M, who are opposite as night and day, who never allow for a dull moment, who make us laugh constantly and test us every now and then, you two may have been the hardest to say bye to. I hope you two continue to learn and grow. I look forward to seeing how much you change between now and the next time I see you. Don't forget us, we are Adam & Cason (not to be confused with Adam & Eve!). I love all five of you, and of course my heart is heavy as you move today, tears stream down my face as I write this post, but I am also happy for each of you. God is going to do great things in each one of your lives. So, it's not 'goodbye', it's just 'see you later' because I know we will be seeing you soon!

Giveaways

Being a first year teacher, I have been on the look out for ways to score cheap/free supplies and materials for my new room. Well through the blog world I have hit the jackpot! There are tons of freebies and giveaways available. I am blogging about a specific giveaway that Kickin it in Kinder is doing. Just by blogging about the giveaway, I get 10 entries into the drawing! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I am the winner! Follow her blog for great freebies and resources! I'll let y'all know if I win :)

Tweet Tweet

Today I joined the Twitter nation. A little late, I know! But I finally did it. Let me tell you, all of the @s and #s are confusing at first! I spent all day a lot of time looking through tweets and deciphering the strange language of Twitter. I'm still learning, so if you follow me, first of all I want to apologize for the unnecessary amount of tweets I put out today and probably will for the next few days! Im addicted. Second of all, don't judge my tweets-I'm learning! If you're not on Twitter, you should join. You get to stalk people like Luke Bryan follow your favorite celebrities, actors, singers, etc. So join! And if you're already on, follow me @Mrs_Schulze! I was going to come up something a little more creative...I'm still working on it! Until my next post...

Updates Part 2

So along with a new job, we also have a new family member. Yes, my husband got us another dog. He is a blue pit and his name is Bubba Sparx. HA! I always think of Bubba Sparks when I say his name, but no that's not his middle name. In fact, he doesn't have a middle name. I like dogs, but I'm not a crazy dog person (although with 4 you may think different) who has crazy triple names for their dogs. Bubba is very different from Cash. Bubba is calm, Cash is psycho hyper. Bubba can sleep on his own (couch, floor, bed, laundry basket), Cash needed to cuddle and be held. Bubba is relaxed, Cash is a wanderer. They are opposites for sure. I guess like children, no two are the exact same. I must admit, while I sometimes enjoy the puppy stage (cuddling, holding him), I will be glad when he grows up and I don't have to clean up his messes and he learns the word 'No!' Until my next post...

Updates

I have seriously got to get it together when it comes to my blog! I really have lots I want to tell y'all about, but lately I haven't been able to post as much as I have wanted to. First off I would like for you all to know that I am no longer unemployed/a substitute teacher!!! NEVER again will I show up at school and someone say "Who are you today?" I get to be me! I get to walk into my OWN classroom each morning and spend time with my own students. No more showing up not knowing if plans have been left for me to teach. No more not knowing students names and what they are and are not allowed to do. I can't believe it! God has truly been good. Although the past year was challenging at times, God was working behind the scenes and preparing me for this job. I will be teaching Kindergarten at Eagle Ridge and I can't wait! God has seriously worked all of this out in a really cool way. I am so thankful for the past year I have had to work (some days), do whatever I wanted on other days, and spend lots of time with my hubby! I have kind of been like a housewife, except I don't really cook or clean.... Oops did I say that out loud?! Anyways, I realize now that the past year has been a blessing and I am thankful the Lord gave it to me. I am now more experienced and have a better idea of what kind of teacher I want to be. If you need some encouragement, just remember- while things around you may be crazy and not make sense, God has a plan for your life and He knows what He's doing. His plan for your life far exceeds the circumstances of your day or the season of life you're going through! (I'm pretty sure that's a quote I read somewhere, so I can't take credit!) Until my next post...

Three Georgia Divas

After 12+ weeks of training, the day had finally come. Hard work, sweat, and tears (luckily no blood) all went in to preparing me for this day. I would cross another thing off My 50 List and I was pumped! I was running my first half marathon (The Diva Half) and doing it with two of my favorite people-my Momma & Tina (and 4500 other Divas--I fit right in)! In our matching neon pink tank tops and purple tutus, we were at the start line and ready to rock this thing! Around 7 a.m. we are off. Within the first mile, my calves were cramping and it didn't look good. I had no clue what was going on and I was frustrated. I had just ran a 10k the weekend before and this didn't happen. So, already, I was on the side walk stretching and trying to relax my body. Stretching didn't help much, so I had to run through the pain until I finally got in to my rhythm. By mile 3, I was doing good and I kept my pace until around mile 9. This was the farthest I had run while training, so anything beyond that point was unknown territory. I didn't know what my body would do, how it would feel, or what to expect. Through miles 10-12, I couldn't wait to see the water stations because I knew this meant I could walk and stretch (quickly). The last 4 miles were tough, especially mile 12. Being a straight away, it seemed to last f.o.r.e.v.e.r. It would've been so easy to give up and just walk the rest of the way, but I pushed myself to keep running, one foot in front of the other. Calves cramped, sides burning, heart tired, nauseas and thirsty, I kept silently repeating my mantra to myself "You are strong. You can do this. You're almost there. Keep pushing." At one point, I'm pretty sure I was saying this out loud to myself, but in a crowd full of women who are running 13.1, no one is looking at me like I'M crazy! It helped that towards the end, we were given tiaras and feather boas to wear as we finished the race! The finish line finally came, but after crossing, it wasn't the joyous, celebratory finish you would expect-at least not for me. I could lie and tell you I could've kept running, pretending to be in Olympic shape, but I'm just going to be honest. I was so exhausted and thirsty. My sides were burning so bad, it hurt to breath. I just wanted to sit lay on the ground, but I knew I needed to keep moving so my muscles didn't freeze up. My friends and family claim that I am the 'Drama Queen', but honestly I was in a lot of pain. I had just pushed my body further than it had ever gone and I was feeling it. I tried to enjoy the fact that we had just completed a half marathon and in all the pictures I put on a smile. I was very proud of what I had just done, I just couldn't jump around, laugh, and scream about it! The pain eventually subsided and my breathing returned to normal. I had finished in a better time (2:33:28) than the goal I had set for myself (2:45). As I look back on what I've done to get to this point and where I have come from in my running journey, I can't help but be proud of what I've done. Seriously, I used to dread 'the mile' in P.E. Who is this girl who runs a 5K like it's a warm-up?! I saw a quote that says, "You are so much stronger than you think you are" and it is SO true! If a mile is tough for you, start walking, take it one day at a time. If you want to do a 5k, work your way up to doing one. If it's something you really want to do, you will put your mind to it and make it happen! When you do that thing you thought was impossible, you will realize you are so much stronger than you think you are! I'm already planning for my next half. The trio is going to rock Savannah at the Rock n Roll Half in November. I have actually thought about doing a full marathon and I want to eventually do one-even if I crawl over the finish line. But right now, I want to get a few more halfs under my belt. I have completed my first half marathon and I have a sticker on my car to prove it!



I made it!



After. Everyone is pretending except me!



We did it!



My #1 fan









Something That's Blogworthy

It wasn't like every other Sunday where I just sit and listen. Yes, I confess, lately I have just been going through the motions. Sunday school, church, singing the songs without really paying attention to the words coming out of my mouth, bowing my head to pray, but having a million other thoughts running through my head-some of you are with me. This past Sunday I heard something that stuck with me. Beth Moore Jr. (I'm not sure if she really likes when people compare her to B.M) started teaching on Romans 8. You need to know that before she started teaching preaching I had asked everyone to pray for me and my job situation- for peace & wisdom. Remember this, it's important! We went through verse 6: For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. We talked about how 'death' isn't necessarily referring to physical death, but how when you are controlled by 'fleshly' things, you are killing certain things in your life. Some of you may be confused--this is what I mean: when your mind is consumed with thoughts of pride, anger, jealousy, doubting God, etc, then you are essentially killing parts of your spiritual life that are necessary. You can kill relationships. You can kill your joy. You can kill fellowship with God. And if your letting the flesh control you, you probably won't be bearing any fruit, well not any of the good kind(Romans 6:21)! The list could go on and on about what is put to death when we are controlled by the flesh. But the end of that verse says the mind controlled by the Spirit has life and peace. So on the other hand, if I am showing love, compassion, patience, and humility, I will experience life and peace. I can experience this through freedom in my own life from whatever it may be that was holding me down before. I will have right relationships with my friends, family, and co-workers. I'll have a right relationship with Christ. I'll bear the Spirit and His fruit. And The list goes on. Now, I've written all of that to get to what I actually want to share with you! God spoke to me Sunday morning. I knew I wasn't where I wanted or needed to be in my relationship with him. I knew I would spend time studying and memorizing Romans 8 this week, just like Stephanie encouraged us to (yes, I said memorizing. the whole chapter. And yes she is crazy awesome!) I went into church, my heart so heavy, feeling God's presence weighing on me. I couldn't even get the words out to one of the songs. I just sat and looked at them, thinking about the meaning of them and thankful for their truth.

Here I am, humbled by your Majesty, covered by your grace so free. Here I stand, knowing I'm a sinful man, covered by the blood of the lamb.

So Monday morning when I sat down to dig deeper into Romans 8, I realized something. I can't have peace (my prayer request) until I'm controlled by the Spirit. Having peace is 'easy' and I use that word lightly. He's given me everything I need, it's not something I have to search or wait for. When I'm focused on the things of God then peace comes as a result. Thats what I've done this week. In the mornings I sit down, open my bible, read and study and throughout the day I try to be intentional about being controlled by the Spirit. I have been waiting for God to give me peace, as if it would just fall out of the sky and hit me, but he has given me his word. It's up to me to dig through it and seek him. Reading the Bible and thinking about different verses reminds me that God is who he says he is and he will do what he says he's gonna do. And that gives me peace!

I'm Gonna Need a Bookmark

Like I told you, on Valentine's Day my hubby and I went to see the Vow. There I saw a preview for The Lucky One-a Nicholas Sparks book. For those of you who may not know, I am a huge Nicholas Sparks fan. I also love to read. After seeing the preview, I knew I wanted to read the book before seeing the movie (because the book is always better). I ended up already having the book at home and started it right away. I have now finished it and cannot WAIT to see the movie-coming out in April, I think. I have also recently heard about a series called The Hunger Games which also has a movie coming out this month. I am now about to start book 1 out of 3. I will keep you guys posted on how it is, but from what I've heard, it's amazing! With all this reading, I think I'm gonna need a bookmark. Until my next post....

A New Look

Welcome to my new and improved blog layout! I felt it was time for a change and found a cute background that just fit! I love my new background and 'banner'. To browse super cute blog backgrounds, banners, etc for FREE go here. This website is very helpful. They even give step by step instructions on how to apply it all to your blog! Chevron, the zig zag pattern in the background, is something I'm really liking right now. I'm even wearing it on my nails---

 

Thank you, Jamberry for my awesome, new nails! Gold & silver chevron is one of the many patterns of nail shields I have. I can't wait to try them all. Don't worry, I will post pics as I try them! Hope yall like the new look! Until my next post...

My Valentine

The day started off as usual, he's up and ready before I even crawl out of bed. Once I finally get up, I walk down the hallway, check to see if he's in his office, and when he's not, I make my way to the living room. I plop down on the couch beside him. It's the usual conversation, he gives me a hard time about how long I slept and then questions whether or not I have brushed my teeth yet. I generally sit in silence, just looking at him and listening, because I'm not a morning person. One day I will miss these mornings and the days of no alarms, walking down the hall wondering which room he's in, him coming and going from the house, but spending time with him when he is home, and possibly having a lunch date every now and then. Our daily routine, "the norm", is what I love about us! Since it was Valentine's day he did get me some flowers, but nothing crazy, and definitely not roses because he knows I'm not a rose kind of girl! Last night we went to Greensboro and had dinner, then watched The Vow. I had been waiting for a while to see this movie. I did enjoy it, but I thought it was just so sad. I won't ruin it for those who haven't seen it, but it's basically about a woman who loses her memory--memories that involve her husband and her current life. She has no clue who he is. She doesn't remember her routine and how he is a part of her life. She doesn't remember how or why she fell in love with him. She doesn't remember the little things they used to do together that were special between them. That just broke my heart! How sad, to lose every memory of someone who is so special to you. After the movie, I couldn't shake the reality that this had actually happened to someone. I can't imagine. I was reminded of how thankful I am for my husband, everything he does for me and all that he puts up with. God really blessed me with a guy who is patient, kind, generous, forgiving, and so much more. I am thankful for all of the time God has given us (8 years so far). I am thankful for each memory I have of us and I don't want to ever take them for granted! So for me, Valentine's Day was just another day. He didn't get me an expensive piece of jewelry, or spend too much $ on flowers. He didn't even get me chocolate (because he knows I'm trying to be good). No, we just spent the day together and did the usual, and that was enough for me!

Running in 2012

Two years ago some crazy friends of mine talked me into running. At first I wasn't too crazy about the idea, but figured if they could do it, I would give it a try. Throughout middle & high school, I hated running. I did not enjoy it one bit. The only time you would catch this girl running was when we had to do a mile for P.E and it was for a grade. Even then I would alternate walking and running. One mile seemed like

such.

a.

long.

way.

Needless to say, I got into it and two years later, here we are! I have been running 5ks for the past two years. For those of you who are non-runners, a 5k is 3.1 miles. And to think, 5 years ago, I couldn't even run one mile! Last year I ran my first 10k, which is 6.2 miles, with a crazy little fire ball who talked me into it. I ran it in 70:40, which was an okay time, but this year I plan to beat it! On Saturday, I completed my first 5k of 2012. I ran the Bobcat Ramble in 29:45, my best time yet! Running for me is addicting. Once I start, I don't want to stop. After a race the adrenaline leaves me wanting more. As soon as I cross the finish line, I'm already ready for the next race. I'm not there to place 1st in my age group or take home a medal. I am competing against myself and my best time. I want to run harder and faster each race I run in. For the rest of 2012, I want to run at least one 5k a month, every month. I am already signed up for a half marathon in May, which is on my Life List. I just want to cross the finish line! I think we already have a potential race for March, so there will be more to come on that race.
Untill my next post...