The big things in life.

Hello bloggers. Once again it's been awhile to say the least, but I'm trying and that counts for something.

This has been a pretty crazy 2 weeks for me and my family. We started off our 2nd week of the new year with a bang at church with our Annual Corporate Fast. Since Ross and I have moved to Dallas this has always been a cherished time as we attempt to start the new year off on the right foot, evaluate our lives, and get things in order. The word for the week at Trinity Church was EMPOWERED. How awesome is that. We don't want to live mundane lives and call ourselves "Christians" just because we go to church. In the days of the early church, people didn't even call themselves Christians but they were called that by the people who saw them live their lives. It was apparent that those in the early church were followers of Christ...not because they attended church...but because their lives were empowered as they lived out the gospel. Throughout this week we started thinking about what it means to "tear down the walls" of the church and actually BE the church. Anyway, God is showing us some things about himself that are changing us...but that's for another blog another day.

Moving on to Saturday, the last full day of our fast. I woke up around 7 am because I planned to go serve at a place that helps women who have been victims of human-trafficking. I was going to be giving facials, pedicures, and manicures to these women who have been rescued, however God had a different plan in store for me that day. I woke up and was totally sick with a bad head cold among other issues. Shortly after waking I got a call from my mom explaining that my dad had just had a heart attack but was currently stabilized and waiting to be taken by an ambulance to another hospital. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. This type of thing happens to other people...not to my dad. The word "stabilized" just kept ringing in my ears. I decided to forgo the mani/pedi giving and stay at home where I could be on the phone with family members and hear each update as they received word from the doctors. I was able to find a flight home that evening which left me in Dallas and away from my family for the remainder of the morning and afternon which turned out to be the best situation. I was able to start interceding for my dad's physical health, emotional state, and spiritual state. I was able to get healing over the head cold and pray for God to use me once I got home. It was an amazing time of prayer and God gave me such peace that my dad was going to be ok and that he was going to use this incident for his glory. As I departed Dallas, I felt totally empowered to whatever it was God had in store for me in Illinois.

There is so much more to this story, but to keep things short...when I got to the hospital I was able to talk with my dad about God's plan and speak faith over all the fear he was dealing with. For the first time in my life, I prayed outloud with my dad and laid hands on him. I am so thrilled at the way God is moving in my family's life. I can see that God is softening my dad's heart to Him and that he truly does have a plan for my dad's life. I am just clinging to the verse that says that 'your entire household will be saved' (paraphrase).

Thank you Lord for moving mountains and for upholding all your promises. "Ask and it will be given to you, Seek and you will find"

This experience (with the help of my Aunt Jan) helped to remind me that there are Big things in life and there are small things in life. This was obviously a "big thing" and after you experience the "big things" you can start to see how the "small things" aren't really all that 'big' afterall. I just love finding pieces of wisdom when you least expect it. :)

Keep praying for my dad! For God to continue softening his heart both physically and spiritually and for my dad to be free of any fears and anxiety from this experience.

Pondering races for the new year.

It may be just a little early to start talking about new year goals, but a little planning never hurt anyone, so, yes, I am already thinking about what races I want to accomplish in the coming year. I know that I would like to do a 10K this year, since I've never raced that distance before. Additionally I would like to do a spring half-marathon and a couple 5K's. The big question for me is this: Is this the year to complete my lifetime goal of running a full marathon? Hmmm. Now that is something to ponder. Such a big decision and lifestyle of running. I know it takes a lot of dedication to complete a half and to double that distance is pretty gutsy. Is that really something I could do? For now, I think I'm going to go about my training for the 10K and the half, just to see how that goes and if the training becomes too much to handle with my job.

Any suggestions for some fun races?

I am thinking about the Cowtown in Fort Worth for the 10K. Ross has run the Cowtown 5K for the past 2 years with his corporate team. This year his supervisor has the idea that we should round up a team to run the 10K and actually try to win it. I, of course, won't be contributing to the winning result, however I can still be a part of the team.

As for the Half, I am conflicted. The Rock n Roll marathon is in Dallas on March 14, which is SO exciting and I've always wanted to do a Rock n Roll race, however it's the same time as my spring break from school and I really wanted Ross to take me to San Diego for a few days. (We won a 2 night stay at a Hilton in San Diego at his Southwest Holiday party and it expires in April). So, we'll see how that works out. There's always the Go! St. Louis half-marathon in April. That was the race that I first completed 13.1 and will always hold a special place in my heart, however do I really want to do it again? Maybe if my little sis would join me...hint hint.

I've also debated trying a triathlon at some point in my life. I don't know though...swimming is hard and bikes scare me. It would take a lot of convincing for me to attempt this feat. It may be just the thing to prevent the monotony of training. I tend to get so sick of running after training for a big race. Any tips?

In closing, I want to share my favorite Christmas song of the day: The First Noel sung by David Archuleta. Wow. If the birth of Christ alone, hasn't gotten you into the Christmas spirit, this should help. (disclaimer: Jesus really is the only reason for the season, however David may just help you remember that.)

And breathe...

Wow, has it been an eternity since I've posted!? Time really flies!

Well, I've made it half-way through my first year of being a teacher. A few things changed over the past semester. I took a hiatus from two things that I love: blogging and running. When things started getting busy at work, I had to cut some things from my life and those seemed like the only negotiable pasttimes to cut out. However, I am hoping that during the second semester of this school year, the newness of everything won't be so overwhelming and I'll be able to reincorporate both running and blogging into my life. :)

In other news: Christmas is in 3 days! Holy cow! I am so excited. This has been the longest duration of time that I have been away from the homeland (Illinois). Ross and I are flying up north tomorrow night. We'll be spending part of the time with my family in Carrollton and good ol' Nebo and part of the time with his family in Hardin and up on "the hill" at his farm. I am sure this will be a very special Christmas full of fun new memories. I am looking forward to hanging out the morning and afternoon of Christmas Eve with my Pohlman family. Everyone will gather in my parents home and eat a delicious potluck brunch. My favorite is the egg casserole that my aunt Jan brings each year. Buttery deliciousness. :) Christmas Day we will travel over to Pike County to have Christmas dinner (lunch) with my Grandma Sue. I am so happy that Ross's parents are going to join us as well. Then I am guessing that the evening of Christmas day will be spent with Ross's grandparents in Hardin and with Stacy, Jonathan, and Ani when they arrive by car sometime that evening.

I am positive that the highlight of my trip to Illinois will be the time spent with my beautiful sister, Dana. She just arrived back to the states from Italy only yesterday! We have so much to catch up on since we had limited communication over the past several months. I am really looking forward to some late night talks that we are known for having.

I hope that you all have a very blessed Christmas vacation!

A sigh of relief

This Friday I had my first round of Parent/Teacher conferences. I about made myself sick the couple of nights prior just thinking about them and stressing over them. Not only am I responsible for updating the parents on their child's speech and language status and progress, but also their math, reading, behavior, organization, and social skills! I was very nervous to say the least. I basically would just lay in bed praying at night for the Lord to cast out all these negative thoughts and help me to just dwell in Him to get my head to stop reeling. I know that He was definitely looking out for me because everything went pretty smoothly on Friday. I was happy with how things went and know that I will be even better in our January conferences now that I know what to expect and I hopefully won't be as nervous.

Next week we have our first field trip and I'm SO excited! We are going to Owen's Spring Creek Farm in Richardson for a little pumpkin picking, hayrides, and petting zoo action. I LOVE fall and everything that comes with it...except for all the dreary rain days we've had lately. Pumpkins, colored leaves, fresh cool air...mmmmm. Anyway, I think my little nuggets will have a fun time there. I can't wait to take them. :)

Today Ross and I slept in and laid in bed all morning, then went and got Krispy Kreme and coffee and sat out by the pool to soak up some much needed Vitamin D and C. It was amazing. I just LOVE living with my best friend. Today we have a few little errands and tasks to do, but right now he is practicing WICKED (the musical) songs on the piano for me. If you don't know, it's my all-time favorite musical and I enjoy singing the songs all the time. If Ross can learn these songs how much more fun will it be to sing them!! My mom sent me this piano book in the mail today...I think with the intention that I would be able to play the songs. (It said "easy piano" on the front of the book). I guess "easy" is still too hard for me, but I can still practice and in the meantime let Ross learn them. Singing is more fun for me anyway.

Hope you all have a fun filled Fall day!

Ah Ah Ah Ah Stayin' Alive, Stayin' Alive.

That's right, I'm alive. I just survived what may or may not have been the swine flu, but definitely the worst flu I've ever had. I woke up Saturday feeling a little off. I couldn't quite pin it at first...a mild headache and my body just felt a little different. But within a couple hours of being awake, I knew what was happening. The flu was in me and slowly multiplying. Of course, I thought I could fight it off with Vitamin C, Airborne, and green tea, but by that evening I realized it was only getting worse. We canceled all evening and dinner plans, I continued popping vitamins and herbal supplements but to no avail I ended up in bed very early. Sunday got worse and I spent the whole day in bed. Then Monday I succombed to the fact I probably had the flu or something else bad and realized I needed "the drug". So I looked up PrimaCare locations/protocol on the internet. I have heard of these clinics and have always seen them around but never thought I would use one. I actually hate going to the doctor, and therefore don't have a primary care physician. Anyway, I needed some urgent care, since "the drug" is supposed to be taken within 48-72 hours and I was pushing it. So, I checked-in online and showed up to this facility. I watched "Hook" for an hour before getting called back to find out I have Type A flu OR h1n1 since they are indistinguishible with the test I was given. However they are treated the same way, so no big deal I guess. It wasn't until midday Tuesday that my fever finally ceased and I started improving at all. I had a fever over 102 for over 2 days and totally felt like I was continuously being run over by a truck. Well, praise the Lord that all things come to pass, and I can say I survived the flu! After taking 3 days off from work, I was able to return to my little bundles of joy today! I was actually terrified to go back. I didn't think I would be able to handle my class, but the Lord never gives us more than we can handle, and I only had 4 kiddos today. (Thanks again, Lord). So we made it through the day and tomorrow is Friday!!!! And I can tolerate most anything on Fridays just knowing that the end is near. :)

Lowkey weekend...just what I like.

Work is getting progressively better for me. I still feel overwhelmed most every day, but I think that's just part of being a first year teacher. I am being stretched so much, but it's a good thing. I feel like I'm developing some nice qualities that would perhaps never have emerged without being put to the test. Here are a few for example: patience, endurance, functioning on less energy, and more. So, I'm happy to be challenged if it means changing me for the better. I hope I'm not giving the wrong impression that my job is just a huge hardship. I am loving it! I love being a teacher and an SLP all rolled up in one and I wouldn't have it any other way. Oak Hill is so great. I love the work environment, the supportive staff, the parents, and my kids. I am so blessed!

Ross and I started off the weekend by eating Mexican at Matt's Rancho Martinez in Lakewood with Molly and Andy. The queso was soooo delish!! We'll definitely have to dine there more once Molly and Andy get settled in their new home in Lakewood. It was so nice to just sit back and have a margarita and enjoy life.

Then on Saturday, Ross and I dog and house-sat for the Parker's while they went to Austin for a wedding. We watched a TON of The Office DVR's and almost got caught up to Season 6...just a few more episodes. Ross and I used to be big Office fans and got Molly and Andy hooked, but then we kinda dropped off and didn't watch any of Season 5. Luckily for us, M and A DVR'd the whole season, so yesterday was the perfect opportunity to get caught up. :) I loved just chillaxing with Ross, Bailey, and Boots all day.

The only downer to the weekend is that my hubby is under the weather. Poor guy has been fighting off the flu bug all week, but it's been a bugger to get rid of. I am just praying against any flu bugs taking residence in me and for total healing in Ross. Please keep him in your prayers that he will be fully well for work tomorrow.

To end on a positive note...Ross and I think we're going to be able to take the Italy trip to visit my sister afterall! More details later, but we're hoping and praying it will all work out. For those of you who don't know, my sister is studying abroad in Florence, Italy this semester and Ross and I would LOVE to be able to go visit her. What an awesome opportunity to travel abroad when you know someone who is living there and who can show you around! I miss her so much, but honestly we're staying connected pretty well due to the technology of email, facebook, and skyping! Skyping is amazing because we can actually SEE and TALK to each other. We totally should have thought about this before! I actually feel like we're talking to each other more while she's in Italy than when she was just in Illinois!

Anyway, enough for today. I hope everyone is doing well! Have a great Sunday.

It rained and then it poured.

Last week was a rough one for me. My kids were crazy at school and I was experiencing a lot of self-doubt (once again). I fell asleep early on Friday night out of pure exhaustion, but had high hopes of getting a lot accomplished on Saturday. I started Saturday off with a 4 mile run in the rain with Molly then went to our favorite place "Legal Grounds" in Lakewood. I did this to get my mind off of my job for awhile. That afternoon I decided to go work at school. I hadn't had time to make my lesson plans for the following week yet and I had a ton of materials to prepare. Just as I was about to be done, I decided to laminate some of the things I had made. I heated the machine up and then placed my things in to be laminated, but instead of everything coming out the back, it managed to curl back up inside the machine. I panicked. I had already messed the machine up once before and I was so embarrassed. I also was so upset that I was causing the "laminator fixer lady" extra work to be done on a Monday morning. Could I feel any less out of control right now? I freaked out, cried, and felt like I could never show my face at school again. (OK, looking back on this now, it seems quite extreme, but I'm just relaying how I actually felt at the time) Then I decided I would call the "laminator fixer lady" on Sunday but I was SOOO nervous. I didn't want to disappoint her and sever a relationship with her. (back story: she had advised me previously not to use the machine after my first mishap). At this point I am so deep in stress and feeling blue that I couldn't even go to church on Sunday. Then I ended up working at my school cleaning all day Sunday with Ross's help and organization skills. (he is truly amazing). Finally, I get in touch with "Laminator fixer lady" and she had grace on me! I mean, she was firm...but gracious. And I could tell that things were going to be ok. All my stress about that situation was suddenly lifted off of my shoulders. She was merciful and kind and everything else wonderful that I needed right then. Things were starting to look up. Today is Monday and I am thanking God for a really wonderful day. My kids had a great day despite being cooped inside all day with the rain. It was the first day for one student not to shrill "I need a break" "I'm mad" or "It's too loud" or escape the classroom and another student pooped in the potty for the first time EVER. I was on cloud 9! Then to ice the cake, I got home around 8 pm to find a package from my mother. She got me a "first day of school" present that she had forgotton to give to me. It couldn't have arrived on a more perfect day. A new purse! Seriously, how do mom's know these things? I just had a breakdown this weekend because my nasty purse was falling apart and had holes all over causing me to lose things. (Ok, let's be honest, the breakdown was more because I was just stressed and irritable...but the purse just happened to be what I blamed my anger on).
So, it's still rainy and wet outside and I know full well that tomorrow my kids might scream and poop their pants, but God is good and shows us his mercy and kindness continually. Something He's teaching me in this new season, is that I've got to keep praising Him in the storm instead of questioning Him all the time. I know He's teaching me in this whole process and I need to draw closer to Him instead of trying to isolate myself. Thank you Lord for you patience and keep working on me. I know I have a lot to learn!