A Burger and a Surprise!

Last night we went to Carmen's Bar and Burger Grill. It's one of our favorite joints and it was a reward for what has been....well, not one of my best weeks. I was just happy to be with my family and eat! I'm always excited to eat these days; but I was especially hankering for a burger.

"I have a surprise for you when we get to the restaurant," said Andy.

Hmmm... a surprise....for me? "Give me a clue!"

Eye roll."No, no clues this time!" That was fine; we'd be eating soon.

But as we waited for our table and waited.....I couldn't wait. "Does it have to do with money?"

"No, no clues! You are just going to have to wait until we sit down." Now I usually would not be deterred at this point. But our table was ready, so we sat.

So what was the surprise, you ask? He gave me an Ipod. Now before you sing his praises to the heavens; he gave me his old Ipod because his new Iphone is coming in the mail today. It was still a nice gesture and it has helped me whittle down my choice for what I want for my birthday. I was up in the air....a Kindle, an Ipod or a GPS for my car? Now, I'm down to Kindle or GPS.

But you know, that's what marriage is. Being thoughtful of one another. Doing little things to make each other happy or encourage one another. So, as drive home from Carmen's, I am playing with my new toy and noticing the day's date.

"Today is March 4th?! Oh geeze, I turn 37 in less than a month!" Well, we all know that 37 is just a stone's throw away from 40. "I might as well be 40 right now. How in the world did I get here?" I bemoaned. (Now for those of you out there who are older than me, please don't take offense. I was this upset when I turned 30 and 35. It's just me.)

"Well, you were born 37 years ago. That's how you got here," my lovely husband answered. Thank you Captain Sarcasmo!

"Yes, I know that. How did it happen so fast, though?!" Did I get a compassionate comply? Did I get a 'Well, you don't look 37?' No! This is what I got......

"Just think. When you turn 4o, I'll be the age you are now! Every time your birthday ends in a zero, I get to say that!"

"You're a jerk," I replied, the corners of my mouth slightly turning up.

Yes, marriage is give and take. You give a little, you take a little. One thing it should never be is boring. I'm so glad mine isn't.

And I am expecting something really good for my birthday this year. And I will be asking for clues!

Pray For All The Pregnant Ladies.....

We share prayer requests each morning as part of our morning routine in Room 51. I have 5 teams of students and it was team 4's turn to share requests or praises. One of my students, a tiny little thing, with a huge personality, shoots her hand up right away.

"I would like to pray for all the pregnant ladies (the First Grade teacher is pregnant as well) that when the baby comes out, it won't hurt."

Oh dear, sweet girl. How do you tell an 8 year old that yes, it's going to hurt, hurt like hec?

We finally decided to pray that the babies would grow healthy and strong. (Anyways, I ask for an epidural the moment I step into the hospital.)

There's never a dull moment in the world of Second Grade.

Thank You, Lord!

I love our weekly chapels at school. I'm always extremely blessed by the speaker, the class putting on chapel or the music we sing. I love it because not only do I get to stop in the middle of a busy morning and worship God, my students get to hear God's Word being taught. (One of the many reason I'm Pro-Christian education. But that's another post for another time.)

I've been teaching for several years and there is one thing I never get tired of......hearing children sing praises to the Lord. I had two especially emphatic singers sitting on either side of me this morning. It was awesome to hear them belt out to God.

Children are so transparent, so uninhibited and sincere. I wish I could be so bold in my worship. I am on the inside, but have trouble showing it on the outside. We should be like children in our worship to God, so genuine and unaware of what others think.

I took a great lesson from my students today. One I hope, little bit by little bit, to put into practice.

Thank you, Lord.

I'm a Procrastinator...I admit it!

So, I'm procrastinating (again!). I've been trying to get up from the couch for the last half hour. Really, I have. To make myself feel better I folded some clothes; but won't put them away because that would require me getting off the couch.

I could blame it on the long week, or the fact that I've got a bit of a cold, or hey, I could blame it on the baby. You can pin almost anything on being pregnant!! The fact is, I have a lot to do by tomorrow afternoon. There's so much to do that I don't know where to begin. So I sit and do nothing.

Well, that's a good plan!!

Andy and I are preparing for a weekend away. Lily's going to Grandma's and Chantel is coming to house/dog sit. Which of course means my house needs to be spotless. Every ounce in my body does not want to clean my house or do the mountain of laundry that's waiting downstairs. Cleaning before you go on a vacation is never fun, but sometimes necessary.

Next morning.......

Just realized I never finished my post! I got sidetracked from blogging because I did start cleaning the house!! I'm a little more motivated this morning, as I vacuum and finish laundry. A weekend alone with my husband in beautiful Sonoma is worth all the cleaning and prep ahead of time. These weekends are few and far between.

Well, I've got a few hours to get us all packed and ready so, I'll end this post for now. Pictures of Sonoma are sure to pop up soon.

Ready or Not! Here comes 2011!!

Yikes! I have not blogged since 2010!

Well, I have few good reason for this; but I'm determined not to let these "distractions" keep me from writing. Even though it may not be as often as I like.

First off, Andy's schedule has changed quite a bit these last two months. He's neck deep in field training! He's loving it, but we are basically two ships passing in the night these days. When I'm awake and at work, he's sleeping. When I'm sleeping, he's working.

Honestly, I feel like a single mom for half the week. When I'm discouraged or just dog tired, I tell myself "It's just for a season.... just a season."

That's reason #1 for not blogging.

As a side note, a couple of months ago, we got to watch Andy get sworn in as an official Sheriff Deputy. I almost missed it due to not leaving the house early enough, getting stuck behind the slowest driver on the planet, and then not being able to unlock any of the doors to the jeep when I finally arrived!!

I made it though, and it was very special. One of the most important days in Andy's life.

Reason #2. Just life. Work. Taking care of an active 3 year old. Making time for family. Trying to keep my house from looking like it needs to be on an episode of Clean House.

Reason #3. Lily turned 3 in January. Can you believe she's 3? I can't! So began the preparations for her Veggie Tales party. This is worthy of it's own blog post.....coming soon. So you see, the Bauers have been a tad busy.

Reason #4. On January 1st (at 2 a.m.!!), I found out our family of 3 will soon be a family of 4! It took 2 more home tests and 2 blood tests to truly convince me that I am having a baby. And now that I have the nausea, the desire to devour large amounts of food, and the need to pee and pee and pee there's no denying it.

Needless to say, we are very excited for Baby Bauer, but the days of staying up past 10 p.m. ( and lately, being able to button my pants!!) are gone.

Blog or sleep, blog or sleep? Sleep wins out every time.

I had a feeling 2011 would be a year of change. I just had no idea how much change and how quickly it would come. No matter how "not in control" I feel at times (well, most of the time); I can rest in the fact that God is in control, all the time.

Bring it on 2011! I'm excited for what lies ahead.

10 Things I Learned in 2010

On reflecting over the past year, here's a few things I've learned:

1. I look good in hats.
2. I don’t look good in skinny jeans.
3. Potty training does not happen in one day. Anyone who says so, you and I need to meet……in a dark alley.
4. Families are complicated; but family loves you like no one else does.
5. I’m no Holly Homemaker; but I think I’m a pretty awesome mom.
6. I’m addicted to magazines with the words organization, storage solution or declutter in the title.
7. Writing is something I need to do and I should have never stopped.
8. The Christian life can be very exciting.
9. My daughter marches to the beat of her own drum. And I really like that about her.
10. That my husband has an amazing amount of determination. He’s quite brave and has actually inspired me to take chances.

2010 was quite a year! I wonder what 2011 will bring? Happy New Year!!!!

A New Normal

It's Day 2 of Andy's field training. He's been on duty for 41 minutes. And I'm not worried.

I thought I would be more worried. I am thankful for this.

Now, ask me how I feel when something really dangerous happens or he's on patrol alone. Fortunately, he won't be on his own for 5 months.

The emotion I'm feeling is lonely. Lily's asleep and Andy's gone and I have to go to bed alone. I hate going to bed alone. It won't always be this way. Just 4 nights a week for several weeks. In reality it will probably be that way for months, or more. And I need to find a way to get used to it.

I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that this is my life now. It's not going to change. Hearing Andy say, "I drew my gun twice last night." is going to be normal conversation for us. It's like a weird other life. Like when Elaine befriended the Bizarro Jerry, George and Kramer.

So what will I do tonight? Finish watching Bones, fold some laundry, do some lesson plans, and pray. Pray for Andy to make wise choices, for God to give him discernment, for me to find joy in the silence and for Andy to come home safely.