Gratitude Friday

Good morning, Company Girlfriends and everyone else! It's been awhile since I've done Gratitude Friday, due to being gone at camp forever. But I'm back home and at my computer lots more, instead of checking email, facebook and voicemail at Mile Marker 43. (The nearest wide spot in the road for cell phone service!)

I'm busy cleaning the house, putting things away, dusting high and low! (Earning big points for Home Sanctuary!) I was hoping to have a full time teaching job by now.....I've applied EVERYWHERE in WA State, even sending off an application packet to my hometown district of North Kitsap. However, nothing has surfaced yet so I'm waiting impatiently for a subfinder phone call. I've got a really cute first day of teaching outfit. So far, I've worn shorts to the school where I used to work as I volunteer to help my teaching friends get ready for their first day of school. Yesterday was that day for them. Today I chose to stay home and focus a bit on me!

Gratitude List for today~

1. a VERY wonderful summer of being at Tshimakain Creek Camp! I miss my camp family lots! The memories made and the kids' lives we touched -- priceless!

2. the Beagle Boys! They turned a year yesterday. We can't imagine life without them! Perhaps it'd be a smidge quieter and less chaotic. But they're so fun. I'll see if I can get a new picture of them posted today.

3. continued sunshine! I've been able to continue working on my tan in the afternoons, to keep it from fading since I've been home from camp. It's HOT during the day, but pleasant in the evening and crisp fall feeling in the mornings.

4. my cousins! I was at my cousin Dan's wedding last weekend. It was fun to be with my mom's side of the family. I'm the oldest of the cousins and there just doesn't seem to be enough time to see all of them, plus they're ALL busy! Here's a small picture of Monica, Teresa, Dan and myself.

5. fresh farm produce! I'm planning on going up to Greenbluff to get peaches and other fresh produce. There's a new type of corn on the cob I want to try. My friend Lisa B has zucchini for me...yipppeee!! Zucchini bread, zucchini choc chip muffins, zucchini fritters...yum~

Have a great weekend, everyone! To those of you whose kiddos don't start school for a bit longer, enjoy the rest of the summer! Glad you could join me for Gratitude Friday and a big cup of coffee. I've missed you!

Just this thought....

Today is the first day of school for Spokane Public Schools. I didn't have a teaching job today so I volunteered in the office (my old job, actually!) and in the workroom to help teachers get things accomplished before the first bell rang! I LOVE public schools just because of this verse.....I love letting my light shine to the kids and staff! Looking forward to the school year, not just with Spokane School classrooms, but anywhere where I get to be with kids and teaching! Let my lifesong sing to you~

(In)Courage -- What Encourages Me?

Courage –noun
1. the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery.
2. Obsolete. the heart as the source of emotion.—Idiom
3. have the courage of one's convictions, to act in accordance with one's beliefs, esp. in spite of criticism.

This new website (In)Courage is launching tomorrow! (their button is on the left sidebar) Taking hope to heart is the site's motto and I can't wait to read about what courage and encouragement looks like in others' lives. "Imagine all of us sitting around the kitchen table at a beach house, coffee in our hands, listening to stories as different as each one telling them." I'm excited! Imagine, the beach, coffee and girlfriends from all over sharing stories. AMAZING!

What does courage look in my life? Courage is being a military wife for over 24 years and being brave during unsettling times in the world. Courage is my fight against MS and the unknowns. Courage is going back to college at age 40 and getting my Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education. Courage is stepping out in faith to try to become the best in what God has for me and learning to "Be Still!" It isn't easy. I fall, often and hard! But I'm thankful for my friends who encourage me in my journeys. I couldn't make it without encouragement!

Encouragement to me is taking time to share a cup of coffee to talk about the struggles and successes of life, my friends and family , an email or handwritten note that uplifts me, laughter with tears for the good times and bad, elementary kids who remind me daily how important my job is. Encouragement gives me extra strength to have the courage to face today and tomorrow without fear! What encourages you?

From another blog friend, I found this quote:

Spread love everywhere you go.

Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.

~Mother Teresa

I can't wait to become friends with the (In)Courage girls! Check out the (in)courage website for yourself and be blessed~

I'm (IN!)

Gratitude Friday

Hello! Whew, I made it with about 45 minutes to spare for my Gratitude Friday list. I am, in fact, drinking a Starbucks vanilla latte right now as I type this out. I can go get you one, too, if you'd like. There's a 24 hour Starbucks just a little bit away...what would you like?

My Gratitude list...

1. the ability to LAUGH! We had Mud Pit this week at camp and boy, did I get m-u-d-d-y! Stay tuned for pictures.

2. time to relax! While the rest of the camp was floating down the river on inner tubes, three of us floated on this big yellow float thing (it was round) and it took about an hour to go from the bridge back to camp. We stood up on it (and didn't tip!), we suntanned, we laughed, we just looked off into the distance and contemplated life or took time to be quiet. We decided we should do it every day.

3. my friend Robin! She was hired today by a school district in Anchorage. She and I have been friends since I started in the Whitworth cohort. Robin leaves on WEDNESDAY to start her new job the very next day. I will miss her dearly. She's been a great friend and support. Thank goodness for email and texting!

4. flip flops! I have been wearing different shoes at camp because of safety when we're doing the challenge course. I had some other cool slip ons that I LOVE when I'm off duty but I was getting a thick line of white on my feet. So I've switched to flip flops (good ones, not the 2.99 type!) to get a thinner white line. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do to have an even tan line...white feet look funny.

5. time to look, in what seems "FOREVER", for a teaching job! If I had tons of major responsibilities around the house besides three cats, three dogs and a hubby, I wouldn't be able to spend this much time in front of the computer. I did turn down an international job in Baku (google to find out what country it's in!) because of lots of reasons. I won't say anymore but please pray that something opens up here in WA State. I am getting discouraged as it gets closer to start time for school.

Alrighty, it's been a pleasure to sip a Starbucks with you late into the late hours of Friday night. Hope you have an excellent weekend. I have NOTHING planned this weekend and since I've been experiencing a bit of vertigo and some other weird symptoms, I'm going to lay low. You can pray that the extreme heat hasn't made my MS flair up....I'm going to be bummed if this is what it's all about!

Share your gratitude list here with the group....check out the rest of Company Girl Coffee and see what Home Sanctuary has posted for us to do with the Small Things in Life.

ps Pictures are coming tomorrow!!