Reunited and it feels so good...

I haven't really had time to process the reunion weekend with SB, Rita and Kim. Really the only reason why I am writing about it this quickly is because I am out to beat them at everything and had to pull the trigger and be the first to blog about it.

The girls got to my house around 6 on Friday. This was remarkable since they piddle-farted around as much as they could and left during rush hour traffic. When Rita got out of the car I knew she didn't want some sappy, long, tight hug so I gave a quick one and said something mean about them being late and to hurry up and get their crap in my car because I didn't trust her or SB's driving. It seemed to set the mood pretty well for the weekend.

And let's talk about what all they brought...I had one little duffel bag and a few books and a purse. Sara Beth did not fail to disappoint with her 3 pillows, comforter, 2 bags packed with fat dresses and other clothes for a two night stay in which with the exception of Saturday dinner she stayed in the same exact outfit with the same exact hairstyle, and a few other random collections. Rita had some TOTO basket, a few bags, a pillow and some other crap. Kim had a pillow, a few bags and some other crap to not be undone by the other two. This didn't count the fact that we still had to go to Wal-Mart and buy groceries. So I finally packed all their crap in the car and finally figured out a way to get the trunk to close. And let's just throw in the side note that I feel so uncool because I do not have a kindle and or knook and or IPAD to be addicted to like crack like these three ladies.

We were off to Wal Mart where I proceeded to tell Rita that I was disappointed that she wasn't 300 pounds and as large as a house. Rita has been talking about her weight like she has gained 500 pounds since Judson. I on the other hand have gained 300 pounds since we left Judson and it was disappointing that she was clearly not in my club. To me she looked just like she did when she left Judson...Tiny and Beautiful :)

It was clear from the car ride that we were going to need to pee a lot in order to not pee on ourselves from laughter. We cracked ourselves up in the first 30 minutes and some how made it through Wal-Mart. As we were trying to pack the groceries in the car we got some unexpected help from a nice black lady who told us where to put things.

We made the trip to the house and had a great weekend. We ate an ungodly amount of CRAP. Like we should all be in cardiac arrest. I have craved meat, vegetables and water all day today. That should tell you something.

We recapped the last 8 years of our lives, leaving out parts until someone called us out. I apparently missed Kim's and had to fill in the pieces as we go and I already knew Sara Beth's.

We talked about you. That's an ambiguous you because we pretty much talked about everyone. Just like you talk about us and we are OK with that.

We talked some about Judson but not as much as one would think. We did however relive a few good old memories that had us all cracking up at how fun our college years really were...or maybe not. :)

We stayed up late, some later than others, slept late, some later than others, and did nothing on Saturday except go to dinner where we completely showed our gluttonous side once again and had one of the most phenomenal waiters ever.

I am sure there is more of a retrospective/what I learned from the girls/ what I missed about the girls/ that may or may not ever be created and posted. It truly was a great weekend though. It was one that I will look back on in 30 years and smile thinking about that comment that was made or that memory that was shared.

Thank you girls for helping me find myself a little more and for helping me remember you.

Love you all!

I'm reading, I'm reading

Over the past few weeks I have actually got the chance to start reading. Reading that has NOTHING to do with emotional behavior disorder, students with learning disabilities, or behavior charts. AMEN!

Instead I am reading:



If you are married you should read this book. The end.



My Judson friends have decided to start a little book club. I will technically start this book this weekend when Kim brings it to me.



Fusion: My pastor has recently asked me to take over the process of new members/visitors. It seems like it will be an easy read. I have already went through the first chapter making notes. I am excited about this new ministry and can't wait to get it all organized and put together (nerd alert!)

So yay for me for reading. I think that this might be my new challenge. To read a book for fun, a book to help me/us grow and a book to keep me engaged in either education or church leadership.

Pretty dang pumped! I am hoping for a lot of time to read between the plan ride to Nicaragua and the 3 hour bus ride once we get there. Ai yi yi!

Letters to Me Part 2

My name is Taylor and I have brown hair, brown eyes, and I like to play sports like Football, Basketball , and I also like to play outside on my trampoline, and I love to hike and get dirty too. I like to act crazy to and I like to watch football and basketball.
Mrs. Peevy is nice and sometimes mean. She is the cheerleader coach and the track coach too. She teaches reading, math, and Science. Mrs. Peevy is married and she is a woman.
Good things to do in class are do your work. You need to sit right and don’t talk out loud. Don’t stand on the desk and don’t get on Mrs. Peevy’s nerves that is a good one. Finally, do what you are told.
Bad things to do in class are fight, getting on Mrs.Peevy’s nerves, talking when Mrs.Peevy is talking ,calling people names and throwing stuff in class. Don’t tear Mrs. Peevy’s books or you will pay for that book, don’t steel anything from Mrs. Peevy or you will pay for it, don’t be bad for Mrs.Peevy or be bad when she’s not there.
Make sure you’re nice to Mrs.Peevy or I will find you and I will hurt you.
Peace from Taylor Coleman

*** Another class had the students write a letter to their favorite teacher. A student who is not my favorite sometimes wrote his to me. I am a little too emotional to add it to the blog today. Maybe next week. ***

Letters to Me

Every year I have my students write a letter to my upcoming class. Sometimes I actually use them and sometimes (more than not) I forget about them. Mainly the letters are a keepsake for me. They are sincere and usually pretty funny. So I thought I would share them with you and have them written one more place in case I ever lose them. :)

Dear Student,

My name is Spencer and I hate writing. I have a twin sister named Savannah. I also have a girlfriend named Savannah. I also hate Science.

Mrs. Peevy is the coolest teacher ever. She is so cool I feel asleep one time and she did not give me a detention. She loves dogs and poetry. She is also married.

A good thing to do in class is listen because it is funny. You should also sit in your seat. You should also help in class. You should always be nice.

You should never talk about her mom. Never talk rude to her. Do not argue with her because you will not win. Do not stick out your tounge to her.

So always be nice. Never be mean to her. Be respectful to her and most importantly be good.

Spencer.

I'll post a few more in a few days!

I say Good-bye you say Hello

Wow. Only 8 more days of school remaining. That means there are only 17 more days until I leave for Nicaragua and 24 more before I leave for the beach. I am saying Good-bye in a few days to my students, my cheer girls, my track kids and my co-workers. A few years ago this would have thrown me for a complete loop and my world would have been shaken. Over those years, I have learned an important lesson. While some good-byes are sad, most of them mean an opportunity for change. An opportunity to start over in some aspects. An opportunity to meet new people along the path that you are destined to meet. People that you will impact but most importantly will impact you. I have made a few close friends at my current school that I will treasure forever. Friends that I will see, stay in contact with, love for the rest of my life. No I won't see them on a daily basis but I won't have to see them on a daily basis to stay close to them.

Do I know what I am doing? Nope. I kinda like that. I like the freedom that in 8 days (10 if you count post-planning) that I will be free for a while. Free to dream. Free to search. Free to see what is out there. Free to ask God to move me right where I am suppose to be. There's something so amazing about being at this place and I feel blessed to be there.

So I might be saying a sad good-bye to another piece of my journey but in some ways I feel like my journey is just starting...again.

Mother MAY I?

Brandon and I have gotten the crazy ideas in our heads that we are only going to use cash for the month of May. We are not going to spend any of our change that we receive from spending the dollars but instead save it till the end of the month. We are going to fill up the cars on Sunday no matter how much gas they have in them with the debit cards. Other than that they are not coming out of our wallets.

*** This is what happens when my husband watches the Oprah network and Susie is talking! ***

Wordless Wednesday

Another Day

Part of me feels bad for blogging. There's so much going on in the world right now that my ramblings about life seem so irrelvant in the grand scheme of things. But then again isn't that how life happens. For some life will stop moving for a period of time because of a horrific moment (someone dies, destruction, miscarriage, divorce etc.) But the world keeps moving. Around and around. Life goes on.

So here are the latest ramblings/rants/happenings.

Ramblings
1. I have been back to the gym for the past two weeks and it feels great. Well actually it hurts like hell but it feels great to be able to say that I have not dropped the ball this time. I might have fallen off the bandwagon for a little while but unlike other times I didn't let that failure keep me down. I am hoping to start seeing the changes in my body soon and really hoping to not get hurt this time. I taking extra precaution in that area.

Rants
2 - 6 I know the majority of us feel this way but let me just go ahead and throw it out there. I know sometimes life sucks. You're tired. Too much on your plate. Not appreciated enough....blah, blah, blah. But if you constantly complain about life NO ONE wants to hear it. If you constantly have stupid remarks to make...NO ONE WANTS TO HEAR IT (EXCEPT FOR THE 4 PEOPLE ON THIS EARTH WHO ARE JUST LIKE YOU AND WILL LIKE YOUR STATUS CAUSE THEY ARE IDIOTS TOO!) I know I post a lot of crap to facebook. I tell you about my workouts that no one cares about or about my students which really no one cares about. But really.... You are happy Charlie Sheen is in T-Town because you didn't see Obama (lack of respect with President but that's besides the point) lift any wood while he was there. Or EVERYTHING that is wrong with the country is President Obama's fault until one good thing happens and all of a sudden don't give the man credit. There are certain events that happen (elections especially) that I just think to myself...here come the idiots. I will go on record to say that I did not care for about 95.6% of the things that President Bush did or said. However, I would never wish the man dead; especially when he was in office. Much more to say but really what's the point.

Happenings
7. I am very proud of the way that my church, school and gym have responded to relief efforts for those in Alabama. I will be meeting up with Sara Beth on May 16th to drop off items and help sort through already collected donations.

8. School is almost over and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I will miss my kids and co-workers but I am ready for the new challenge and new place. I will update more on where and what that will be in a few weeks. :)

9. Today is my 3rd anniversary. It is hard to believe it has been three years already but in some regards it's hard to remember life without him. I hope when we are celebrating our 63rd anniversary he is still making me laugh, still keeping me in check and still looking at me the way he did the day that we got married.

Hope everyone is doing well. Peace out.