Tony is a High School Graduate!

SVHS C/O 2014

Congratulations Baby Brother! 

For Good.

These lyrics resonated with my soul tonight ...

I've heard it said,

That people come into our lives

For a reason

Bringing something we must learn.

And we are lead to those

Who help us most to grow if we let them.

And we help them in return.

Well, I don't know if I believe that's true

But I know I'm who I am today

Because I knew you.

Like a comet pulled from orbit

As it passes a sun,

Like a stream that meets a boulder

Halfway through the wood.

Who can say if I've been changed for the better

But because I knew you.

I have been changed for good.

It well may be

That we will never meet again

In this lifetime.

So, let me say before we part:

So much of me

Is made of what I learned from you.

You'll be with me

Like a hand print on my heart.

And now whatever way our stories end

I know you'll have rewritten mine

By being my friend.

[dedicated <3]

My Weekend in Photos

Ten days until Alison gets married! Let the official countdown begin :o)
Alantic City was a FUN time and a picture is worth a thousand words (and memories). 

being thankful

The month of May has finally dawned, and the countdown to summer break officially begins. I find myself looking at calendar jam packed with commitments and plans and due dates. I know for sure that this month will be nothing short of busy and challenging. As my life would have it, I hit a rough patch this week emotionally. And living in an apartment by yourself, with no one to talk to, leaves you to do one of two things. I either sit on the couch and watch TV/surf the Internet mindlessly for hours or I sit on the couch and think. This week, I sat. And I thought. And I sat and thought some more. And I am perfectly content with admitting that that is one of the worst things I could do. Idle time is certainly the devil's play thing.

I have spent more time this week over analyzing all of the things that are not right with my life ... then counting the blessings of all the good things God has done for me. Reading through a few of my fellow blogger friend's posts led me to this conclusion: when I take to my blog this month ... I need to count my blessings. When I wake up in the morning, I need to count my blessings. When I go to sleep at night, I need to count my blessings. I want to turn around my perspective and my mindset. There is so much going for me right now ... and I need to acknowledge and celebrate it.

So I am starting today. As I sit here <naturally listening to sevendust on repeat> I realize I am thankful for:

• surviving the week with no money. 
• yet I had food on the table and gas in my car tank.
• sessions with my two boys ... they are great young men.
• my students - teaching each and every one of them brings me great joy!
• being named team leader of our special education team for the 2014-2015 school year.
• the start of my last eight week graduate course for the year.
• my cohort is fantastic and I can tell I am going to learn/grow a lot this course. 
• a mother who consistently listens without judging and gives without asking for anything in return. 

Here's to challenging myself to see the good in every day, everyday for the month of May. 

exactly what I needed to hear ... exactly at this moment

"The defining times in life are those that test your character, push you to the end of you rope. Those moments that will either make or break us, build us up or tear us down. The choice is yours. Stop dwelling on the past and live in the here and now.
I can be changed by what happens to me, but I refuse to be reduced by it."
-Let It Go.