The Best of 2011

The end of a year brings a time of reflection. I've been looking back at all of the big moments that happened in the past year and thought I would share... Here we go:

January: Filled with snow days and time spent with friends. A trip to Cincinnati/Newport with friends to celebrate Becca's birthday. Pretty sure the making of RMNS (our girl band) happened at this time.

February: More snow days spent in jammies and watching sappy movies I'm sure. Celebrated Valentine's Day with other single friends by eating Mexican food and getting free dessert. Celebrated my nephew's 7th birthday.

March: Began the Lenten season and gave up TV, which led to canceling cable. Watched UK basketball (online) whoop up on some teams in March Madness. Had some snow in this month, too.

April: A week in Ohio for spring break. Started getting serious about couponing. Celebrated my niece's 4th birthday. Enjoyed a Cinn-a-bon with a friend. Washer flooded. (I agree, this was not an exciting month.)

May: About as exciting as April.

June: Filled with excitement! Finished my 5th year of teaching (1st year at JELV). Went to a Deeper Still women's conference in Louisville. Celebrated another niece turning 4. Got severely sunburnt. Reunited with friends from Asbury at our 5th year reunion. Flew on an airplane for the FIRST time ever in my life. Spent a quality few days at the beach with my family and dear friend. Began training for a 5K while at the beach.

July: Attended my first Wilmore 4th of July parade. I dressed up as a cow and got some free Chick Fil' A food. Filled with fun summertime things: karaoke, being crafty, watching movies. Went to a Reds game. Begin the "back to school" classroom preparation. Had many visitors to the Wilmore/Lexington area- Lynsi, mom and dad, Travis, Sarah & Kyla. Consistently ran.

August: Began my 6th year of teaching kindergarten. Kept running. The month of August is always consumed by school.

September: Became a certified Zumba fitness instructor! A mouse invaded my house. Ran some more. Became certified in Safe Crisis Management. Family visited for a fun time at the orchard. Found out I'm going to be an aunt again!

October: I turned 28 (yikes). Celebrated my birthday with a week off of school (fall break), Chick Fil-A breakfast, lunch with friends, bowling, Orange Leaf, dinner with friends, and games/snacks with friends. I like food and friends. lol Taught my first Zumba class. Participated in my first 5K. Went to Big Blue Madness! Dressed up like Christy Chance as a community helper. Had a fun-filled costume party at my house.

November: RAN my first 5K. Spent a weekend in Indianapolis. Realized I have much to be thankful for. Decided that teaching in Fiji truly sounds amazing.

December: Wilmore Old Fashioned Christmas (my favorite celebration of the year) with friends and family. Shopping and decorating and Christmas movie watching. Had a great tacky Christmas sweater party. Went to the Lexington Opera House to watch the Nutcracker. Ate at De'Sha's for the first time. Went ice skating at Triangle Park. Took my sister to our very FIRST UK basketball game at Rupp Arena. Baked cookies and caroled with friends. Celebrated Christmas with my family..... there may be even more to come!

I am one blessed girl. I wonder what the last 4 days of 2011 will hold.

Creepy

Ok, I admit, I am a Facebook user and possibly a little more than I should be. Facebook always has ads on the right hand side when you're signed in that often have to do with your profile. For example, since I am listed as "single" in my relationship status and "Christian" in religious views, there will often be ads such as: Find Single Christian Men Now... Click here! Yeah, a little annoying. But it gets even creepier....

As far as I know, I have not mentioned anything on Facebook about Halloween or costumes or my love for Saved by the Bell. All of a sudden an ad pops up on Facebook tonight.... "Want to be Kelly Kapowski this Halloween?" Pardon my language, but OMG! How did they know?!?! I feel like Facebook is full of mind readers. I'm getting creeped out. Creepy Facebook. That is all.

Failure.

Wow. Once again, I am a blogging failure. Hopefully this evening, I will take the time to be reflective and make a new post. No time right now.

So You Think I Can Dance?

One of my very, very, very favorite TV shows is FOX's So You Think You Can Dance. Sadly, I had forgotten that a new season had started. I don't watch nearly as much TV as I used to (which is good), but I really truly have missed this show. Today I have been catching up with this season (thank you, Hulu). This season is PACKED with incredible dancers. Definitely one of the most talented seasons I've seen in a while. I love this show because it shows how truly athletic dancers are and it stretches the dancers' talents outside of their normal genres. In honor of SYTYCD, here are some of my very favorite routines from past seasons:

Ok, that's enough for now. :) I'm going to go get caught up on this season. And maybe work on my moves.

Reunited... and it feels so good.

Class Reunion. Some people shudder at the thought of their class reunion. I, however, was quite elated that the time had come. It has been 5 years since I was a student at Asbury. 5 years! I can't believe it either. I can't believe that I have officially been a "grown-up" for 5 years.  The Steadfast class of 2006 (all the classes have a name at Asbury- and colors, hymns and verses) was invited back to reunite with one another.

While Facebook and modern technology allow us to "keep in touch" (or eerily stalk) each other, there's nothing like having real, face-to-face conversations with people who were once an integral part of your life. The amazing thing about it is that we have not been together for 5 years and were able to pick right up where we left our lives, only with grown-up life changes. The past 2 days have felt just like an addition to our 4 years together. We have laughed like crazy. We have shared about our current/past life stages. We have reminisced (or RMNSed) about our favorite memories. We have teared up a little. We have hugged and taken squishy-face pictures. We have played games. We have been Asbury inappropriate... because we can. Life has just been grand.

The greatest part of the reunion for me is hearing how God is working in my friends' lives. The thread that connects us all together is our relationships with God and following His calling in our lives. It is so encouraging to have friendships with people that value their purpose and are intentionally changing lives. Some of my greatest friendships are with my friends from Asbury. We have such a strong connection that even years apart can't separate us.

Love my Asbury friends! Thank you Steadfast class for such an amazing weekend. :)

Blogging Fail

So I just realized it's been over a month since I've blogged. Fail. I'm not feeling inspired tonight; however, be on the lookout for an upcoming post in the near future.

P.S. School's out for the summer! : )

Sickness = Blessing?

Today is Wednesday and the first day I went to school this week. Long story short, I woke up Sunday morning (and most of Saturday night) coughing, not able to breathe, congested sinuses... you know. I felt horrible Sunday, went to the doctor (with the assistance of a dear friend), got some meds, had serious asthma issues going on, took 2 days off from school, and still feel crummy. But in all of this, I try to look for the bright side of things, so here we go. The blessings of sickness:

1. Time spent with my mom. Yes. My amazing momma drove down Sunday morning to take care of me and help me get things ready at school for the week. I couldn't have done it without her. And having company when you're sick just makes it so much more bearable.

2. Sleep. 99% of my sicknesses fall on a weekend. Seems to be when my body just crashes and knows that I need a break. I was able to sleep a lot, which I desperately needed.

3. Reading. I hardly ever read. Period. I know, I know. I'm a teacher. I teach reading. I should read all the time. I used to, but I like filling my time with other things besides reading. I started a book over Christmas break, and guess what? I finished it yesterday! haha It was soooo good! I can't believe I took 27 years (ok, more like 9 or so) to read Redeeming Love. Amazing. I might do a book review/blog post with more details later.

4. Thankful heart. I take for granted the luxuries I have in this life. I got sick. I have insurance. I can see a doctor. I can get medicine. Yes, it's an inconvenience and costs money, but I have the means, freedom and accessibility to health care. I'm so thankful!

5. Small reminders. I missed 2 days of school. Today I asked my kiddos to tell me something that happened while I was gone or share some surprising news. They all took a turn and I had about 5 kiddos left to answer. One of my /favorites/ just said "I missed you. That's all." Broke my heart. I love that kid. I got more hugs and notes today than ever.

Yes, even good can come out of being an asthmatic. What a blessing!

my time vs. God's time

Not many words to say, just want to share this song. I know country is hard for some people to bear, but the words to this song are great. I especially am guilty of thinking that the only time is "Nancy time" and forgetting that "God's time" might not be the same. My friends and I semi-jokingly say that we, unbeknownst to ourselves, add words to scripture... "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart *RIGHT NOW*" Psalm 37:4 (emphasis/additions by me). "And we know that in all things God works for the good *RIGHT NOW* of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28 (emphasis/additions by me). That's not the case. Yours truly is guilty of putting God in a box, expecting these promises immediately, but His timing is better. Always. 

40 days: pray . be still . listen

40 days are over. 40 days of not watching t.v. Why? I prayed about what to "sacrifice" during the Lenten season and I recognized how much of my time was spent watching pointless shows on t.v. T.V. programs and commercials were feeding into my mind. I would turn it on just for background noise. I would turn it on for comfort. I needed to sacrifice that since it was consuming my mind and filling my time. Click here for a good little description of Lent for those of you wondering why I would do such a thing. (It's just from wikipedia, but I like it's simple definition.)

There you have it! Instead of mindlessly filling my mind with impure thoughts on t.v., feeling the pressures from advertising, feeling insecure about myself as compared to what is shown on t.v.... I decided to give it up. I made a sign across the buttons on the t.v. that says "pray . be still . listen" as a reminder of what to do instead. Through a Bible study done with some of my girls here, I realized I don't take the time to listen to God. Turning the t.v. completely off really helped. In fact it helped so much that I actually cancelled my cable. Sounds a little extreme, huh? Now I'm saving $20 a month and I know that I'll be just fine without it. These 40 days were just a glimpse into living television free. I'm actually pretty excited about it. 

How was your Lenten season? Thoughts.... (leave a comment).

Annoyances at Starbucks

This is just a little venting session to let out some things that annoy me. Maybe they annoy you, too. While sitting in Starbucks this afternoon, I was reminded of some of these things. Here we go:

1. Fannypacks. Why were these invented? And why were they ever marketed? And why in the year 2011 is there a man wearing one in Starbucks? Mystery of life. Fannypacks never were and never will be cool.

2. People trying to be cool. There was a young family (husband, wife, daughter) here at the Bux. They were sitting together on a couch. Things were fine until the mom gets out her camera and starts making the dad pose for pictures. This wasn't just any pose. It was a "hold the starbucks cup up by your face and give me a pouty look" kind of pose. He/She was obviously trying to improve his image by showing his expensive beverage and acting all debonair. It wasn't working.

3. Touchy-feely couples. While this didn't happen at this current visit to Starbucks, I was reminded of a time of when there was a couple "studying" at a table. The 2 of them were definitely in college. They both had their MacBooks open, with earbuds in their ears facing each other at a table. The guy was very focused on his work, staring at his screen and really doing some in-depth thinking. The girl however, had slipped off her shoe and with her legs crossed was discreetly (to him, but not to the other patrons) rubbing her foot up and down the guy's calf. Not only was she doing this, but she was staring him down with a "come hither" kind of look. Best part about it: he was ignoring her!

4. Bedazzled things. A mother-daughter duo just showed up outside on the patio of Starbucks. They had with each of them a dog. 2 dogs, both in bedazzled shirts. No joke. Rhinestones and gems on shirts made for dogs. One in yellow, one in purple, matching bedazzled shirts for dogs. I love my dog. But this is taking it too far.

5. Old men that give you the heebie-jeebies. I am sitting here with my friend, Rebecca. We are 2 pretty good looking gals if you ask me. There were 2 older men, both wearing wedding rings, sitting together, reading on  their their iPads and drinking their tea concoctions. Upon several occasions they would turn and look in our direction. Maybe it's just because we're intriguing: both sitting here with MacBooks drinking overly-priced coffee drinks and occasionally having a little conversation but mostly keeping to ourselves. Or maybe they're just creepers. Either way, they give me the heebie-jeebies (which I just discovered is a real word using the dictionary on my dashboard).

And here is a photo I snuck so that you can enjoy the fannypack as well.

storms and sunshine

On my way back to my home in KY from a week-long spring break trip to OH, I was struck with inspiration for a blog post. So here it is! Warning: This may be lengthy.

Preface #1: Changing - As many of you reading this know, I made a big life transition last year. I had a good job that I enjoyed (most of the time). I had purchased a house and remodeled it to fit my fancy. Most of my family was nearby. Oliver and I were kickin' it in southern OH. I made a trip down to Lexington in January (2010) for a friend's wedding. While driving to the wedding, a thought was placed in my head that I actually said out loud (yes, I was driving by myself but sometimes I talk aloud to myself). "I love it here! If I knew of a job, I would put my house up for sale and move here!" Lo and behold... after the wedding, I was catching up with a friend at dinner. She told me of multiple kindergarten positions available at JELV. I loved JELV. I decided right then to apply, see what happens, and if this was my calling to follow through with it. Long story short: I applied. I interviewed. I waited. I was offered a job. I accepted. I put my house up for sale. I found a place to live. I moved.

Preface #2: Searching. I made about 5 trips down to the Wilmore/Nicholasville area in search of a place to live. I was constantly looking online for a safe, cheap house or apartment that was pet-friendly. I had to bring Oliver with me. I first looked for houses. I looked at a nice house in Wilmore being sold by the owners. She told me of several houses/townhouses her family has if I should ever decide to rent.  My house in OH had not sold and therefore I was not going to be able to buy. On a trip down in mid-June, I was getting very frustrated. The places available to rent were either a) too expensive, b) not pet-friendly, c) in a shady part of town, d) smelled like cats. I decided to call the lady that had shown the house who also had rentals. She didn't answer. She didn't return the call. We started to go home (my awesome parents came with me to find places). I stopped at Hobby Lobby to get a birthday present for my niece. While checking out, the lady returned my call to see if I was still around to look at their house. Problem: They had since decided to sell the house that was a rental instead of renting it out. I told her my situation (not able to buy since my house hadn't sold) and she offered to show me the house anyway. We made the trip back to Wilmore. When I got there she said she had talked to her husband and they will let me rent the house until mine sells and then I can buy the house from them when I can. How awesome!!! I loved the house, the location, the landlords... perfect. They even let me have Oliver without a pet fee. Hooray!

Preface #3: Waiting. Seems to be the story of my life: waiting. I think I'm a pretty patient person as it is, but this whole waiting on things lately is really getting to me. Here we are in April. My house in OH has been for sale for 11 months. Not one offer. Several lookers. Multiple people wanting to rent it. Just waiting for it to sell. Waiting... praying... waiting... praying... waiting.

Story: Ok, now with all the background information... the point of this post. I've been discouraged, fearful, worried, confused... multiple other feelings as well. Last year, everything seemed to fall in place for me to be here. I KNOW that God was calling me here. That was His voice reminding me how much I love it here. This was His leading to JELV, His presence in finding my house, His provision of friends and coworkers. I undoubtedly believe that God has purposefully placed me here, lead me here and provided for me here. Then why hasn't my house sold?

I'm fearful. Fearful of my house not selling. Fearful of my landlords getting tired of waiting for my house to sell. Fearful of not being where I should be. Things are very tight right now. I am a single person, practically paying to live in 2 different places. Imagine how money is tight for a couple right now and multiply that by 4 because there is just 1 of me and 2 places to pay for. I'm making some big adjustments financially to try to lessen the burden. It's a storm right now.

I spent my spring break with my family and friends in OH. 1. I miss them. 2. I couldn't afford to go anywhere else. 3. I just needed to get away.... I had several conversations throughout the week with my parents, sister and friends about all of this, usually in tears. I want to be here. I feel like this is where I'm supposed to be. But it's really hard. It's a BIG storm right now.

As I was driving back today, it was storming. It was storming bad. I hate storms. I had to pull over 2 times because of the hail and rain. The storms continued all the way through Lexington. It just rained and rained and rained. Guess where it stopped? In Wilmore, where it was bright and sunny. I was reminded of last spring when my mom and I were coming down here for my interview and then when I moved in... there were rainbows both times. We both have often commented on God's promise for me being here with the sign of the rainbows. I think today's sunshine after the storm was a sign from Him for me today.

As I could see the sunshine coming up ahead, this song was playing right at the lyrics talking about storms:

When my life is like a storm

Rising waters all I want is the shore

You say I'll be ok

Make it through the rain

You are my shelter my from the storm

Everything rides on hope now

Everything rides on faith somehow

When the world has broken me down

Your love sets me free

Chick Fil'A

In honor of my delicious dinner tonight... one of my favorite songs for your enjoyment.

A sad, tired, gloomy day can be turned upside down with Polynesian sauce, nuggets, lemonade and waffle fries. Oh I'm in love with Chick Fil' A.

To be a Buckeye or a Wildcat?

Ok... well the long awaited matchup between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Kentucky Wildcats is coming true. I'm hurt. I'm torn. I'm happy. I'm excited. I have until Friday, March 25 to keep my excitement in. I've gotten some slack here in the Bluegrass about not being a "true blue" fan, so I wanted to take this opportunity to share my loyalty and explain myself for the choices I have taken:

Since perhaps the end of my high school career (when I actually started caring about sports besides the Wheelersburg Pirates), I became a fan of the Ohio State Buckeyes football team. Growing up in a "not very Buckeye-friendly" home, I decided I liked them. My mom could care less about football. And my dad always seemed to like everyone except Ohio State. Not really sure why, but I know he doesn't like all the hoopla and show-off attitude attributed to the Buckeyes. I liked them. Scarlet and Gray. The Horseshoe. Script Ohio. Hang-on Sloopy. Good stuff. They are my favorite FOOTBALL team.

Then enter college at Asbury in Wilmore, KY, location about 25 minutes from the heart of Lexington, KY, home of Rupp Arena. The Kentucky Wildcats. One cannot be an outsider living in the bluegrass and not feel the pride and dedication of Big Blue Nation. I became a fan. I love the sense of pride and community that these Kentuckians show when their team takes the court. Blue and White. Rupp. Legacy. C-A-T-S. Good stuff, too. They are my favorite BASKETBALL team.

During football season, I fully support the Ohio State Buckeyes. I have 2 scarlet and gray blankets, multiple shirts, earrings, a real Buckeye necklace, lunchbox, etc. They are my football team. I change my ringtone to their fight song in the fall. When I moved to KY, I had to get rid of my Ohio license plates. It made me a little sad. Luckily in KY you only need 1 plate on the back of your car. So I purchased an Ohio State one for the front. Now I feel that I represent both Ohio (with the OSU plate) and KY (with the "unbridled spirit" plate) on my car.

During basketball season, I fully support the Kentucky Wildcats. This takes the cake right here: I have a UK SNUGGIE! Yes, you read that correctly. I have UK pom-pons, multiple shirts, shorts, jewelry, hoodies, a bag, magnets, stationary. Just a true blue fan. They are my basketball team. Last year, while vivaciously cheering for them during March Madness, I took a lot of heat from my peeps in OH. I specifically remember wearing a UK tattoo on my face, snuggie on, pom-pons in hand, teaching my niece to spell CATS and screaming at the TV during the West Virginia game. They lost. I am still a fan.

Thus bringing us to the matchup on Friday of the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Kentucky Wildcats. Sigh. Here we go. I do enjoy following college basketball. I always fill out a bracket. Last year I was the only female at school to participate in the bracket challenge. I surprised the men. That being said, I do my homework. I keep up-to-date on ESPN and following the teams. I know that Ohio State is awesome this year. I know that UK has had some issues (so young and difficult time winning on the road), but they're getting there. I decided to go with my head and not my heart on this one. If I complete my brackets just by my favorite teams, then KY would win the whole thing. But I complete my brackets based on who really has a chance. That being said.... I have predicted the Ohio State Buckeyes to beat the Kentucky Wildcats. Will I be happy if either win? Yes. What will I be wearing? Maybe a little of both teams?

If you're still reading by now... bless you. My prediction for Friday-  OSU: 78, UK: 71

Hello Blog World

Well, hello there! I have decided to enter the exciting world of blogging. Setting up this blog is a pretty big deal. I created a classroom blog a couple of months ago, but that is solely for the use of my students and their parents. I can't get too personal there. I needed another outlet... so welcome to "who i am is quite enough."

I've been resting and relaxing this evening, and while talking to a friend (and fellow blogger) she reminded me that I needed to start my blog. It took me a while to come up with an available name that I liked, is meaningful, and sums up my life. After several failed attempts (so many like-minded people in this world), the end result is "who i am is quite enough." As much as I would love to claim that quote, I can't. It's from a line in a song by one of my favorite artists, Bethany Dillon (song- Beautiful, iTune it if you don't have it).

Remembering my worth, knowing who I am, and finding myself are all struggles that I often battle with. Thankfully I have a mighty God who loves me, cherishes me, and leads me to live my life with that knowledge. I hope you enjoy this journey of blogging with me. Be blessed.