212 Poplar

Who's Thankful?

2008-11-27T18:22:00.000-08:00

I have so much to be thankful for and here in no particular order:

-that my parents love each other and the 3 of us girls

-my 2 sistas

-cute little doggy

-that I didn't die today in the 10k

-great job

-good friends

-my Lord and my country

Did I mention

2008-11-12T16:58:00.001-08:00

....that I'm tired of writing and want to create for myself. I haven't picked up my torch, silver, file, saw in almost a year! Nothing! I miss it.

Love Ya Pop!

2008-11-11T16:20:00.000-08:00

How did you do it? Happy Veterans Day Pop! :)

Tired As Crap

2008-11-06T13:35:00.000-08:00

Today was the day of all days. Knowing that I will be taking off tomorrow I am going a thousand miles a minute to get everything done. I got alot accomplished but still there is so much to do. The good news I'm going out to eat w/ the roomies. Not anything out of the ordinary but still a highlight of the day. Now I'm going to do some dishes and then fold clothes. Nothing but excitement for this girl! Above is pic of an ol' friend to lift it up.

Is He Really Going to be the Answer?

2008-11-05T16:39:00.001-08:00

So last night America choose the 44th President of the United States or should I say people that never voted before in their life stumbled into the polls and choose just because he was black and younger than his opponent. That's right "Change is Coming"! Soon, I and all other middle and upper class will be paying and forfeiting hard earned money for people who choose the wrong path starting off in life. Not my fault and definitely not my problem. True I am honored and lucky enough to be alive to see the first black president but I feel people are expected an overnight miracle. They are sadly mistaken and I am screwed for the next four years. Last thought before I hit the publish post button: If I see Oprah crying as she watches the acceptance of the President Elect one more time I'm going to scream! Have a great four years, its going to be a blast. :)

Favorite Day of the Year!

2008-10-31T16:11:00.000-07:00

The Ipod playing Daughtry one of my favs!

Two of my 1st grade favorite students!

Me rock'n it on We Got the Beat.

Today was just fabulous! I woke up with a song in my heart knowing that the day was going to rock, literally. I put on my costume (Nick Jonas) had breakfast provided my wonderful secretaries and principal. Then the entire school held our "Read Like a Rock Star!" incentive program. I filled in for 2 grades and then rocked on medium guitar setting at the end with the cultural arts team an assortment of faculty members. (thank you Friday night youth group!) Then came the Halloween parade. Of course each year I'm stuck in my room hanging out with the students who don't partake in the parade and every couple minutes I hang in the hallway to catch a glimpse the characters walking by. An hour later my principal got on the loud speaker to let us leave early. Now I'm having my perfect Halloween evening by watching my favorite October movies. These are some sites of the day.

"Goals 2000"

2008-10-20T17:19:00.001-07:00

Remember "Goals 2000" when Clinton was in office? That was for my fellow teachers and politicians. Anyway, my roomies and I have a list of goals posted in our living room to keep us on our toes and accountable at the end of each month. But lets not forget accomplishments. Accomplishments let us reflect on how far we have come.
Todays accomplishments:
-lesson planned for Naty Bohs. w/my mentor teacher
-typed lesson plan for formal observation on Wed.
-ran 6.18 miles (thanks mom's mile tracker!)
-folded and hung up clothes (don't be fooled, just b/c my room is small doesn't mean it doesn't get clean)
-made a Halloween wreath for our door

Ta-da!

Keeping Up Appearances

2008-09-29T18:46:00.000-07:00

Reasons for not keeping up w/ my personal blog:

1. I'm stressed about my work for National Boards.

2. My allergies are making me digusting.

3. Running everyday (except for this past week b/c of allergies in full effect)

4. My children.

Do You Want to Go to the Seaside?

2008-09-07T17:50:00.000-07:00

Give me a couple of skinny brits with crooked teeth singing my favorite songs any day! I love Luke and Hugh from the Kooks. Thank you for playing my fav. songs of all time!

Special shout out to Carrie for getting me in to whatever I want. :)

I Gotta Go!

2008-09-01T17:42:00.000-07:00

So this morning I met up w/ my pastor for a 4 mile run which turned into 2. We began the run at his house. Started off very well, beautiful day and a light breeze. We ran onto a back trail behind Gorc field. We came off the trail and then all of a sudden it hit! I had to pee so bad. I know TMI, but it felt like my bladder was going to burst and not like "ooo, I think I have to pee!". Oh no, it was "I think you need to call 911 b/c my appendix just burst out electric eels and their eating there way out!" So I turned to him and said your going to go on w/o me. He said ok and I walked and prayed. Then by the grace of God the pain stopped and in that window of opportunity I sprinted back to his house to open the door and "fixed the problem".

1 Hour of Summer for Me!

2008-08-15T20:02:00.001-07:00

So let me recap my "Liv'n Great in '08"

Does He See Me?

2008-08-14T20:10:00.000-07:00

So both of us went away for the rest of our summer (this time not together) and we went shopping and bought these seperately. Then the other roommate took our pic wearing our new pretties infront of the bathroom wall.

I heart Bob Costas.

2008-08-12T17:13:00.000-07:00

So its only the fourth day of the olympics and I feel like a crack attack. I can't get enough. Every time I see the US compete an invisible tear trickles down my cheek. I haven't missed a swim of Micheal Phelps and love Kerri Walsh and Misty May. And most of all I love you, Bob Costas, the hottest olympic announcer....And who doesn't love all the hip up to date music playing in the background as they introduce an up and coming olympian. I wonder if I can buy the soundtrack?

Thailand '08

2008-08-02T09:31:00.000-07:00

2008-07-31T04:27:00.000-07:00

I'm down to hours now in this tropical beauty Thailand. Every minute has not been wasted (other than the crappy manicure and pedicure I paid 200 baht for!) We got back from Chiang Mai last night and ordered in pad thai. I really like all thai food but thats my fav.
Chiang Mai we did:

elephant jungle riding
rafting
waterfall climbing
tribal weavings in the mountains
climbing the highest pt. in Thailand
freezing my butt off in the mountains w/ rain
spending tons of bahts at the occasional night market
peeing in a hole standing up while talking to my friend next to me ordering a coffee (its all part of the thai experience)
listening to obnoxious overweight muslim men talk to much on our 2 hr. trip back to chiang mai from the mountains
having a lady fall asleep on my shoulder w/ her daughters head in her lap in the same 2 hr. trip.
getting thai scrub in places i didn't even know i had

looking back at all the pictures i have taken

---Priceless

Land of a Thousand Smiles

2008-07-24T20:51:00.000-07:00

I love it here! I'm, at this moment, so overwhelmed to type the places, people and stories for this entry. So let me just briefly sum up in a list form (my favorite) of what I've encountered here thus far:

pedicure/manicure
aromatherapy massage a.k.a (they should have warned me of the allusive female happy ending massage)
blue elephant cooking school and restaurant
food market
authentic 2 hr. thai massage (i died and gone to heaven)
Awat Arun (the temple that i climbed almost killing myself to see monks and the grand palace)
Pat Pong (red light district)
Riding a Tuk-Tuk (mr. toads wild ride, thai's answer to the taxi cab)
Ambien
speaking their language and street names to get around

This is just the tip of the iceberg. To be cont.....

Another year, another....

2008-07-20T17:48:00.000-07:00

Art Trek '08 is finally over and all the sweat, blood and tears have been all wiped away. Each year I tell myself I can't learn anymore from these children and each year I'm blown away. Here are the magnificent results of the week.

Sunshine on my shoulder

2008-07-14T19:29:00.000-07:00

Sunshine is not what I woke up to this morning. Being it was the first day of Art Trek and me being a little pessimistic, it turned out to be a good day and after camp was done I went to my parents house to listen to my pop ask "how you want your steak done?"
After dinner my sister and I went on a small excursion to a number of our favorite stores to buy necessities for the weekend, i.e. books/cds/basket for our bike.

Oh Baby Drive Away to Malibu

2008-07-12T07:05:00.000-07:00

So basicly we ate our way through the west coast, starting off w/ this little number in Baker, Cali. We stopped at his hotspots in each city where we stayed. Good recommendations, Guy!

Me in the back of our black Rogue.

Santa Monica beach

Malibu

Malibu

Vegas Baby!

2008-07-11T19:45:00.000-07:00

First things first: In-N-Out Burger! Amazing! This is prob. the one thing that should not stay in Vegas or the west coast for that matter.

The first night at the Palms in our room. Lisa a little sickey.

This show was pretty amazing, not going to lie.

Paris!

Beautiful work of art for the ceiling decoration in the Bellagio.

Us eating dinner at the Spice Market where the buffett offers all ethnic cuisines. My fav. was the Mexican buffett.

MGM Grand

New York

Excalibur

Endless Love

2008-07-10T19:59:00.000-07:00

This is what consumed the majority of my day. My endless love. The female parental unit, two younglings and I went on a small but very important yearly pilgramidge to Pencyl-tucky's Dansko outlet. The most wonderous store in the world for you feet.

I'm Back!....again

2008-07-07T20:03:00.000-07:00

So I'm back from sunny Orlando. It was down right a quick and dirty, but still relaxing/revelational weekend. My roommate and I stayed w/ our old Bible study leader/mentor, who has been guiding us amazingly the last year. Her husband and her were real. I love the way they interact and show loves not just to one another but everyone they come into contact w/. They are def. servants of the Lord. While I was there I read this life changing book. I also watched this jaw dropping show in downtown Disney. (my second one in the past 3 weeks) I'm trying to see all of them b/c they are so incrediable. I went and sunned out on Cocoa Beach. They water was amazing but the jelly-fish sting and the massive back leg sunburn was not. People could totally tell that I was trying to "neutralize" the sting on my leg while I was standing on the sand bar.

I went to their church Sunday morning, but the real treat was later that night being among 300 other 20 somethings worshipping. And I'm not a real big "worshiper" but I found myself actually singing and meaning it and feeling it. It is the 5th biggest church for 20 somethings in the nation. (website is done very stylishly too!)

So all and all this weekend = I'm looking into volunteering w/ for an organization that provides for sexually abused girls in 3rd world countries.

And so it begins

2008-07-02T20:27:00.000-07:00

In honor of not being in the state for 4th of July, my roommate and I jetsetting to another part of the nation. Keeping up w/ the mantra "living great in '08" we will be enjoying our nations birth by skiddling around in Fl. Can't wait!

In the meantime I'm doing fifty things at once:

listening to my new ipod from my fam for my b-day
blogging
checking out other peoples blogs
trying to pack
packing and addresses jewelry for customers to ship tomorrow
cleaning

Lets see how far I get?

Gone but not forgotten

2008-07-01T19:02:00.000-07:00

Then and ....

...Now

So I've been thinking about it for the past 3 years and talking about it for the past year. I finally did it!

I'm Back!

2008-06-30T19:23:00.000-07:00

It was a wonderful road trip, but I'm glad to be back to East Coast calamity. Since I've been back I have to start preparing for the next adventure in "Leah's Living Great in '08".

clean room for Isabelle
get hair cut
solder jewelry and mail off to customers
gym it up every morning
prepare mind, body and spirit for someones day of birth
pack for Fl. trip w/ Jules for 4 days, leaving on birth of our nation
p.s. I'm all about lists and goals

Tomorrow I'll post pics and stories of what went on in the 4 states I was in.

So Long, Farewell....

2008-06-17T11:24:00.000-07:00

I'm down to the wire now. We leave for sin city in a couple of hours. Already I'm second guessing what I've packed and watched one of my roommates self-distruct infront of my eyes when she witnessed her fully packed suitcase explode on the floor from her bed.

Can't wait to share pics and stories. I don't have any pics for my west trip but I will leave you w/ a couple of pics. of who I hung out w/ for the first days off of school.

On His Day

2008-06-15T13:02:00.000-07:00

On my pop's father's day and 63rd birthday we celebrate w/ festivities of opening gifts, eating crabs, my sister's homemade banana pudding w/ vanilla waffers, my peach cobbler and finishing it off by watching the U.S. open, all his favs. He declares every year "this is the best father's day and birthday ever!" This the aftermath of the days events.

it's all Greek to me

2008-06-09T18:39:00.000-07:00

When all is right w/ the world and I feel I can't possibly fit one more thing in my schedule there comes a show that will warm your heart. I have officially completed the 1st season and am waiting w/ bated breath come this September for the 2nd season and its only June. I am mildly obsessed and am totally in love w/ Clark Duke's character Dale.

Ta Da!

2008-06-08T17:26:00.000-07:00

So, I set up a blog account many moons ago and didn't do anything w/ it. Then I deleted it and am now starting from scratch.
Let me just fill people on whats been going on. Since starting my "Live Great in '08!" life campaign, I have booked a couple of trips for my break as an art teacher during the summer. It's not only count down time to days left for teachers in school but till my roommates and I leave on our trip out west. (11 days left) Then I come back and leave for Fl. Come back from that, teach at an art camp and then take off for Thailand w/ a friend for two weeks. I can't wait! In between those travels I will be hanging pool side w/ friends, making jewelry and just loving life!
Find part of my life @ http://www.jacobswife.etsy.com/