Wicked!!!

For Christmas, my parents bought me tickets for Wicked in San Francisco. Mel and I have been SO excited to go! It finally came, and it was AWESOME! If you get the chance, you should definitely go! :) It was a super fun, much needed girls night out. Thanks for going Mel!

Super Short Trip to San Diego

On Thursday night I left for San Diego so I could make it to see Tricia and Travis get married in Coronado! It was super fun! I enjoyed seeing everyone that I havent seen in forever! I had fun hanging with my grandma and then with my siblings and friends at the wedding! I had to come back on saturday, because my parents were coming to visit on Sunday. It was short, but super fun. Congrats Trish and Trav!

budget cuts

http://www.register-pajaronian.com/V2_news_articles.php?heading=0&page=72&story_id=6824

http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/localnews/ci_11849653

More on this later.

Copying Kendra

On my friend Kendra's Blog...she talked about how Dr. Phil (who I think is lame..which is besides the point) asks his guests to fill out this questionnaire. I had fun reading hers, so I thought I would do it, since I pretty much don't have anything exciting to write about.

10 defining moments in my life

1. My parent's divorce.
2. Going to Christian Club in high school. seriously...the reason I turned around and followed Christ. Brandon was a big part of that.
3. Costa Rica Mission Trip
4. My first week of college.
5. Getting my first paycheck, and really being on my own.
6. Melissa going to the hospital.
7. My half-brother being born.
8. My mom being re-married and getting the best step-dad ever.
9. Moving out of my apartment/comfort zone
10. Benjamin being adopted and the miracle of his little bro.

7 critical choices I have made

1. Accepting Jesus at Sea World...awesome, I know.
2. Changing my major from Kinesiology to Liberal Studies.
3. Going to Grace Church for the first time.
4. Moving to Santa Cruz
5. Choosing to teach in PVUSD.
6. Showing up at a certain SLO house unannounced all the time.
7. Quitting soccer junior year of hs.

5 pivitol people who have written on the slate of who I am

1. parents, all 4 of them
2. Jamie, an old soccer coach.
3. Katie, Tim and Boys
4. My Grandma
5. Cynthia--Mentor Teacher

Life is good.

All is good in the world of Christal. I'm pretty much settled in and doing well. Budget cuts have been hard on us lately, but other than that, life is good. Not much to update on.

I am loving the new church I am going to. I just joined a small group and enjoyed it. The church just did an awesome series called "There's an elephant in the..." (basement, nursery, kitchen, bedroom, etc.) It was basically a series on difficult family topics. I really enjoyed it and was convicted by a lot of it. The abuse sermon was especially difficult and the bedroom one was more humorous.

Next week we start a series based on the Book of Ephesians and this book:

It's actually really interesting. You should check it out! Have a great week!

Student of the year

Now for some more bragging. One of my students (I've had her for 2 years) was chosen as the student of the year for our school. Here's our picture at the District Board Meeting. I'll have to harass her about holding her award upside down.

****See below post for fun Science Camp post****

Science Camp!!!

This past week, all the 5th graders went to Science Camp! We went to Camp Koinonia. The kids went Tues-Fri. Since I have 4th graders, as well, I went all day Wednesday and all day Thursday, and worked the other days. It was such a fun break from the reality of testing and budgets. I loved having a fun experience with my students, outside of school! They did so much hiking, kissed lots of banana slugs (A santa cruz thing), made new friends, went on the high ropes course, and learned a lot about conservation of food, energy and the Earth, in general. It was fun for me, because I didn't have to do much! The camp staff takes over, and the teachers relax for most of the time. On Thurs. morning I took a 2 hour nap! In the afternoon, we take over activities. I was on the high ropes course. For people who know me, that's a big deal. After I was coaxed through the course once, it was no big deal at all. The kids had such a great time and didn't want to come home!

Some camp highlights:

1) Every cabin had to come up with a song or poem: One of my favorites...to the tune of "I kissed a girl" by katy perry.. "I kissed a slug and I liked it! The taste of its slimy texture." so amazing.

2)The high ropes course. Watching kids overcome their fears, it was awesome.

3)Spending time with my kids without the daily pressures.

4) Fitting in the science standards!!!!

5) Every meal was SO fun. I looked forward to those.

6) Realizing how much I'm going to miss my amazing 5th graders! :(

Photo Shoot...

I recently found these pictures from when we were waiting in line for a ride at Knotts Berry Farm. They made me laugh. I hope they give you a laugh today, too. :)

"Our" dog

If you saw the cute pictures of the dog below, you're probably wondering who I meant when I said "our dog." In 2 weeks, I am making a pretty big move. Although it is only a mile away, it is a big change. As mentioned in previous blogs, my friend Melissa, was in the hospital for a week. She is doing awesome and is just going to dialysis 3 days a week, and seeing the doctor often. Eventually she'll need a transplant, next month we get started on that. Anywho, her and her husband asked me to consider moving in after we did some joking around about it. After that, the doors began to open. I wanted to be there to help in anyway I could, and it just felt like the right time to leave my situation at home. So, on Feb. 1, I move in with them, their 4 year old son, Andrew, and the new dog, Lola. I am SO excited about this transition.

Those of you who know about New York, are probably wondering what this means. This means that in July, I'm not making the move to New York. I was excited about it, but right now, doors were closed and others were open, so I'm following that path. I am excited to pursue that dream another year. :) AND I am still looking forward to visiting Rachel who is still going!

And in the end, God is still good, isn't he? He has been so faithful, and my faith has grown so much stronger in the last month!

So, that's a little update about the happenings here. I promise, someday, I'll post catalina pictures. :)

Meet Lola

Our new chihuahua. :) shes so cute and a super good dog. I know im super behind on posting, but grandma is asking for pictures.

Update and Cassie's Graduation

So Mel went home from the hospital yesterday (Friday). I took the day off on Friday to spend time with them because Mel had a hard time remembering this the day before, which scared me. I was so glad I did it because it was hard to leave them today. Anywho, she is home and doing SO well. The doctors were very optimistic and couldn't confirm lupus cerebritis, which is a good sign. They didn't find proteins in her spine, which means she didn't have to start the chemo medicine.(Praise the Lord!) I am super proud of how she did, and even though it was an exhausting week, I am thankful for every minute spent with them!

Now for the promised graduation update! Cassie is a 2008 graduate from Cal Poly! She still has 3 months left of student teaching, and then she'll be a teacher, too! It was super fun buying her all sorts of teacher stuff that I wish I had! I had an awesome time visiting with all of our mutual friends and especially with Jon and Noonie. It's always fun to see them, because we just pick up where we left off. I'm super proud of her and am looking forward to watching her grow as a teacher! Enjoy the pictures. :)

So now I am in San Diego enjoying Christmas break with my family. And on the day after Christmas, Cassie and I leave to celebrate her graduation with a trip to Catalina! I am so looking forward to it and I think I deserve the relaxing. :) I got to start the trip off with a visit with my SLO-no-more family. It was SO great to see them, but way too short. Maybe Katie will post some pictures so that I can steal them. :) Hope everyone is doing well!

The roller coaster...

of emotions has been throwing me off the track this week. I spent Monday and Tuesday all day at the hospital...and I was there after work yesterday, and will be there again. I am tired and emotionally drained. But it has all been worth it. Randy has been super thankful that I've been around for cards and scrabble playing. I was sad to go back to work on Wednesday, but it needed to be done. I missed the kids and they missed me.

Melissa is doing well. Monday she was exhausted and slept pretty much all day. Tuesday she was her normal self and talked all day. On Wednesday she had dialysis, surgery for the dialysis and some new medication, so she was way out of it. Her blood pressure has been coming down, so that's a blessing. It looks like the diagnosis will be lupus cerebritis. This is the swelling of the main "tree trunk" of the vessels in the brain. This is what most likely caused the seizures. Her outlook is good, especially since they started emergency dialysis.

It has been so hard to watch everything happen. This is my first real experience like this with someone I love. Every hour I spend is so worth it, and I know it means the world to her mom and Randy. Thanks to those of you who are praying. Keep it up!

Here some specifics you can pray for:

1) Their 4 year old son Andrew, it's really starting to affect him.

2) That Mel will get to go home tomorrow!

3) That they have a smooth transition the next few weeks.

4) That I will be able to leave for home without worrying too much.

5) That the doctors will be able to treat this with the lowest dose of medication possible. (its a possibility she may have to take some meds that are kind of like chemo)

I'm off to the hospital for my last visit. When I get home this weekend, I promise to update on Cassie's graduation!

Birthdays and other happenings

This was an interesting birthday. I turned 24 today. Doesn't feel any different than 23.

I started the day off with breakfast with the family. It was a fun way to start my birthday! I was with them because we had come to SLO for Cassie's graduation. (more on that in another post) However, about an hour prior to breakfast, I found out my best friend in santa cruz had a seizure. She doesn't have much kidney function left and was about to start dialysis.

Although I know she will be fine and God is in control, this shook me to the core. I was crying every few minutes and my heart just cried out to the Lord. I went up to san jose to see her, for just a few minutes and it was awkward, because what do you say? I just wanted to love on her and tell her how much she means to me...but the room was small and they were exhausted and she looked so weak. I left there feeling even more broken and helpless. She has had other hospital visits, but this one seems much more serious. Part of me (as dumb as it sounds) was heart broken that she couldn't spend this special day with me. She helped planned it, and we've been talking about it for months! I couldn't imagine it without her. But alas, life goes on, and it did.

Along with Melissa and Randy, I am blessed with TONS of other amazing friends in santa cruz. 15-20 of those amazing friends showed up for dinner downtown and games and Candy Cane Cream Pie at my house!(K, we had a whole one left over, too bad it wont make it til next Saturday...)Mike and Brian came down from San Jose and lots of other friends joined. They helped me to enjoy the little amount that was left of my birthday. The boys bought me a game called Loaded Questions and it was amazing. There was SO much laughter. I couldn't help but enjoy myself! It's like that kind of enjoyment that you're having so much fun, but then you remember who's not there to share it, and you feel guilty. But anyways, it was great fun and thank you to all who came, called or facebooked me with birthday wishes!

Thanks for reading, even though their aren't pictures (still working on fixing that.)

And please be in prayer for Melissa and Randy and their 4 year old, Andrew. Thanks. and Mel if you ever get to read this...love ya and am here for you always! :)

This year I am especially thankful for...

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am SO thankful for my Jesus, my family(ies) and my friends.

I am also thankful for normal health, even though I don't currently have it. sigh..it's been a long week. Prayers are welcome...I'm feeling very discouraged.

Twilight

Isabella: Are you going to tell me how you stopped the van?
Edward : Yeah. Um... I had an adrenaline rush. It's very common. You can Google it.

Edward : That's what you dream about? Being a monster?

Isabella : I dream about being with you forever.

Isabella Swan: Look, You gotta give me some answers.
Edward Cullen: Yes... No... To get to the other side... 1.772...
Isabella Swan: I don't need the square root of pi.




I thought it was so GREAT, but a little cheesy. I am a total sucker for cheesy movies though. I think the guy who playd Edward is super weird in real life, but he started to grow on me halfway through the movie. A lot of the characters were casted well, and of course it was nowhere near as good as the book, but I was entertained. The only part I strongly disliked was the 2347987 screaming girls. I will probably go to see it again when the hype calms down, there were times during the movie that I couldn't hear the characters! Anyways, it was a fun girls night out and I enjoy a cheesy romantic movie every once in awhile! I think you'd like it even if you haven't read the books. It wasn't dark at all, and there wasn't that much vampireness (that comes more in the other books). go check it out!





Did anyone else see it? What did you think?

Spontaneity

Spontaneous:
1) Happening or arising without apparent external cause; self-generated.
2) Arising from a natural inclination or impulse and not from external incitement or constraint.
3) Unconstrained and unstudied in manner or behavior.

I, personally, LOVE being spontaneous. Unfortunately, my working life doesn't always allow it. I always think, I shouldn't do that, I'll be so tired in the morning! I remember talking with K and T when I was still in college about how hard it is to find spontaneous people. It doesn't have to be anything huge...maybe it was just showing up for dinner, when you know the invitation is always open (or the menu by the stove said mini meatloafs were coming...haha) Or it could be randomly driving a few hours for a shopping trip. The more responsibility, the harder it is to be spontaneous.

Last night, we were sitting at Woodstocks pizza after church and it was about 9:15 pm. We decided we really wanted dessert. Of course, NOTHING in Santa Cruz is open at that late late hour *shakes head* So we think, hmmm San Jose = Cheescake Factory, Bakers Square or Bjs. We choose Bjs because of its closeness and yummmmy Pizookie. So 4 of us headed over the hill for chocolatey goodness. It was SO much fun and SO worth it. I was totally Breaking Out, because I knew I'd be exhausted in the morning, but as a wise man once said....Blow it off! There were many laughs that we are still laughing about today. I think they got annoyed at me saying how awesome they were for being spontaneous...but how rare it is! Thank you to you 3 who made my Sunday awesome! I'm pretty sure our night reflected definition #3 of spontaneous...haha

When was the last time you did something spontaneous?

Driving down the 101, Caaalifornia here we come...

I know, I'm a total nerd for starting the post with the OC theme song. Unfortunately, I had it stuck in my head ALL weekend. I headed down to Orange County to visit my favorite (formerly SLO) family. It was so nice to get away and enjoy my sweet time with them. The boys are SO big! I got into Ontario on Saturday morning, and my parents came up Saturday night. We just bbqd and hung out, it was nice to see them! On Sunday, we went to church, and I had lunch with some college friends I hadn't seen in awhile. That night, I taught(ish) them how to play Settler of Catan. Someone *cough cough* got a little obsessed with their roads and settlements, so we played about 5 more times before I left. So much fun, though. On Monday we went to Knotts Berry Farm. I hadn't been there in SO long, so it was a fun treat! Tuesday we relaxed and then headed to the airport. It was truely awesome. I was sooo sad to be back and go to work. :) Enjoy the tons of pictures to come. :)

This is the ride where you have to work to make it move. Doesn't sound like fun to me! :)

We were a little bored while waiting for the roller coaster.