Made it...barely

One word can describe my flights back to the States...BRUTAL! The only redeeming qualities about my trip was getting to fly to London with my new friend Schanell, and the fact all my luggage made it safely. The 3 hour layover in London went by fairly quickly, but the 6 in Chicago...not so much. And I really don't love the Chicago airport. Let's just say I started traveling at 7:00am Prague time, and didn't lay my head down until 8:00am Prague time. The loooooongest traveling experience e-v-e-r. Next time I'm definitely paying the extra $200 for one connection with little to no layover. Oh, and did I mention that out of my 3 pieces of luggage, the lightest came in at 27 kilos? I really hated those things by the end of the trip...

Typically I find my way to Target on my first day back, but this time CVS had to do. Don't you just love that feeling of walking into an American store knowing you can get pretty much anything you want? I love it...unfortunately, we didn't have a lot of time, so I just had to pop in and get the essentials. It was sooooo hard not to throw a million things into my basket!!! And I forget how friendly everyone is...asking me how I was doing, if I needed anything else, and did all that with a smile!! Oh glorious day...One question that threw me off is when they asked if I had a card...."A card?" I thought to myself. What kind of card? The customer behind me kindly stepped in and said, "A CVS card." Ohhhhhh, yeah, I probably don't have that with me.

I'll update with more happenings. Oh yeah, and for those who don't know I'm in Philly right now. After a week here in Philly I'll be heading home to Dallas. Pray you are doing well!!

Oh Crap!

An email I received from my good friend Amanda...it made me smile

To The Powerful Women in my Life:

Live your life in such a way that when your feet hit the floor in the

morning, Satan shudders & says...

"Oh Crap....She's Awake!!"

AHHHHHH!!!

Just make it stop!! I feel as if the days are passing by at an unusually fast pace. Life is pretty insane in more ways than one right now. On top of the insanity, I'm not sleeping. No, not on purpose, I literally just can't sleep. I took drugs (Nyquil) a couple nights ago, but opted out lastnight, which was big fat mistake. It's like I have jetlag, but for no reason. I don't fall asleep til like 2:00 and sleep until like 10:00...stinks. Just can't turn the brain off...

Here's how I've been passing the time:

"I don't care what Jim says. That is not the real Ben Franklin. I am 99% sure."


Jim Halpert: [dressed as Dwight Schrute] Question: What kind of bear is best?
Dwight Schrute: That's a ridiculous question.
Jim Halpert: False. Black bear.
Dwight Schrute: That's debatable. There are basically two schools of thought...
Jim Halpert: Fact: Bears eat beets. Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica.
Dwight Schrute: Bears do not...what is going on? What are you doing? Well, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so I thank you.
(Jim pulls a bobblehead on his desk)
Dwight Schrute: Identity theft is not a joke, Jim! Thousands of families suffer every year!
Jim Halpert: Michael!
Dwight Schrute: Oh, that's funny. Michael!

Mi Madre

This has taken waaaaaay too long, but wanted to send a special "Happy Mother's Day!!!" to an amazing mom...I'm sad I wasn't able to be with her on that special day to celebrate her, but she knows she is loved and cherished more than words can say! Thanks Mom for your support, encouragement, for drying my tears even millions of miles away, for the endless amount of prayers you've lifted up on my behalf, and most of all, for loving me with an unconditional, never ending love. You are BEAUTIFUL inside and out, and I am so very proud to call you Mom!!! LOVE YOU!!!

Mrs. Farnsworth

I received some sad news today...My most favorite teacher of all times, and the reason I became a teacher, passed away last Wednesday. Mrs. Farnsworth was an AMAZING woman to say the least. She impacted her community, friends, and every little wide-eyed 1st grader that walked through her doors in ways that are too numerous to list.

I can still remember the excitement I had walking in her class each morning. What made me feel even more special is that she let me come early so many mornings to help set up the classroom for the day...whether that meant putting up new decorations, setting up for theme days like dinosaur day or underwater day, or just reading a book, I LOVED being around her. She grew within me (and so many others) such a strong desire to learn, be challenged, and do all things with love and integrity. My senior year volleyball season they did video tributes to each of the seniors. All parents of seniors were asked to pick someone that impacted their daughter the most to say a few words on the video...my parents picked Mrs. Farnsworth.

The following link is an article written about her life. The thing is, even after you read through all the outreaches, woman of the year awards, teacher of the year awards, and endless number of community events she participated in, you still can't get the full scope of the impact this woman had on people...on individual men, woman, and thousands of boys and girls. She was a great woman...

Budapest...It Hurts Sooooo Good!!!

Alright, so here's a few pics(I'll post more later) from Jacqueline and my trip to Budapest. I was delightfully surprised by how much I loved this city. Maybe my expectations were just really low, but I really did enjoy it, and would definitely suggest it to anyone who had the time. Jacqueline and I decided not to take advantage of public transportation, and instead took a wonderful stroll along the Danube each day. We seriously walked more in 3 days than I typically do in a week (which is saying a lot). I think we must have walked around 40 miles. BUT the scenery totally made it worth it.

Jacqueline, you are by far my favorite traveling buddy, and I look forward to our next adventure!!! (i.e. you coming to Tejas!!!)

I promise to have more details on the trip soon!!!

Cuppycake Song

Ok, so there's some history with this little song...it started in college, and I would play it over and over and over! I loved it. Well, my good friend Robyn and I have little pet names for each other. Just hearing it (or reading it in an email) makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside...well, maybe not warm fuzzies, but definitely a big smile!!! I'm not going to share what those sweet little terms of endearment are, but I will say one is pretty close to one of the names in this song.

Well, when I googled the song to listen to it, and discovered it's origins go back to 1994. The crazy thing is that it's an actual little girl singing it! Love this...hope you enjoy!

Pray for Africa...Just takes ONE

The pace of life

Well, to say I've been doing a poor job of updating my blog would be a huge understatement! BUT, today is a day of sleeping in, staying in my pajamas til 3:00 in the afternoon, and catching up on life, blogs, and everything else I've been neglecting. Life is zooming by at rates I can hardly fathom, and I'm hoping to see signs of slowing. Don't you hate those time were you feel so completely overwhelmed in life? Where everything is being held by a string, and you're praying to God that string will withstand the pressure. This has been my life the last month or so. I feel I'm definitely at a marathonesque pace, and have been grateful it hasn't felt like a sprint. Slow and steady I can handle right now. Anything faster and I might have had a breakdown.

All that to say, I have allowed myself to use today to take it easy, enjoy some silence, journal about life, and reflect on the weeks gone by. I'm realizing more and more how much I enjoy my downtime, and how important it is to my overall well-being. I always thought of myself as more of an extreme extrovert, but have grown to recognize that might not be the case. Oh, how nice it is to stop every once in awhile...I pray you are doing well...that you will take the time to slow down and recharge. Till next time...

Goodbye's, Birthdays, and more friends!!!

The last part of Heidi and Raven's trip was full of parties and fun. I had my good friend Jacqueline come in from Ostrava, said goodbye to 2 friends moving back to the other side of the world, and Dot had a birthday!!! Whew, so much going on!!! For Heidi and Raven's last night, we went to one of my favorite restaurants, Cowboys, enjoyed the amazing view for "dessert" at the UPrince, and loved every minute of it!! Such good times!

Dot and I hosted a going away party for Sara and Betsy. It was sad realizing they were leaving, but definitely a good time at the party. We'll miss you guys!!!!



And finally, it was sweet Dot's birthday. Some girls met up for a fabulous dinner and Ambiente, and there were definitely some sparks flying! You can check out my friend's Sunny's blog to see what I'm talkin about. Soooo blessed with some amazing friends here in Prague!!!