I Need You More

Hi all!

This song has been on my heart for the past few days. A friend was sharing with me part of his testimony and this was the song he listened to at one point in his life. I've heard this song but I listened to again after he reminded me of it and it took on a whole new meaning for me. We all need Jesus more, more than yesterday, more than words can say! I played it for Leah as I was putting her to sleep and she asked me, "who do we need more of?" It was so precious. She started singing right along and it just melted my heart.

Blessings,

Absence

Hi all!

Personally I don't like when bloggers randomly stop blogging without an explanation. Well, that blogger was me this past month in a half.

Honestly, I don't know where to go from here. At one point I thought I should get rid of the blog altogether because it is the Internet and I am posting pictures and talking about my life. Do I make a fool out of myself? Then again, who cares about my blog on the Internet?? And, if you think it's foolish-that's ok! Don't read it!

So, I don't know. I restrained from blogging for a little while but my heat is still in it (does that sound silly?). Basically, I want to continue to blog. I loved scrolling through the past years' blog posts and recalling events I wouldn't have remembered otherwise. 

I don't know where to start regarding all that has happened in the last few months! One thing that comes to mind are the words I heard in a sermon: when you are in the center of God's will, you will be happy. I couldn't agree more. The Lord has been showing me His will for me for this present time so clearly and I am so thankful and so content. In the process He humbled me, and broke me of the "I" in me (and still is!), given me wisdom, and continues to lead me. Where would I be, and where would we all be, without Him?

Blessings,

Blackberry-Pistachio Meringue Baskets

Hi everyone. This is a great individual dessert recipe. I'm so bad with putting recipes on the blog. A few friends have asked me for the recipe so here it is.

         Ingredients:

Meringue Baskets
3 egg whites
1 cup sugar
pinch, cream of tartar 
Pistachio Cream:
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup sugar
3 tbsps pistachio instant pudding and pie filling 
1 tbsp vanilla extract
Blackberries, or whatever other berries you'd like to have 
Chocolate Ganache
50 grams chocolate, finely chopped
50 mls heavy cream, almost boiling


Directions:
Prepare a pastry bag, fitted with a plain round 1/4 tip, or a star tip. Drape the pastry bag over a tall glass. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside.
1. Preheat oven to 270F (or the lowest temp your oven goes to)
2. Beat egg whites. When they have tripled in volume, look white and foamy, start adding the sugar, one tablespoon at a time. Continue whipping for about 10-15 minutes, until the meringue is thick, white and glossy. It should stay in place if you put the bowl upside down.  
3. Transfer the meringue into a prepared pastry bag.
4. On prepared parchment paper, make 1 to 2 inch circles, by piping out a swirl, then go around the edge once, creating a ‘rim’ to the basket.
5. Bake for 2-3 hours at 270F. Make sure the meringues are dry before you remove them from the oven. To check, remove one meringue from the oven and let it cool. If it feels weightless and when you knock on it, it sounds hallow, then it’s ready. If not, just place it back in the oven and let it finish drying.
Chocolate Ganache
6. When the meringues have baked, pour the hot heavy cream over the chopped chocolate, and let sit for 1-2 minutes. Mix until smooth. Drizzle on the inside of each meringue baskets.
7. For the cream: whip the chilled heavy cream and vanilla extract until thick and smooth, add the sugar, then the pistachio instant pudding and pie filling. Mix until firm. Be careful not to over mix.
8. Spoon the pistachio cream into each meringue basket.
9. Top with fruit. Serve immediately, or no later than a few hours so that the cream stays in tact.
         


 Blessings,

Spring Break

It's called spring break but it is so cold. I haven't had a Spring break in April since high school, so it's a nice change. 

I've been going to work everyday this week because it's a good time to get most of my student teaching requirements done. The more I do now, the less I will have to worry about in the coming weeks. (At "work" I get paid to do my homework). Then I met up with Yulia for some Tim Horton's chili. It was so good and we had a good time chatting since we haven't seen each other in a while. 

 One of my student teaching requirements is to create and teach a unit. The unit happens to be poetry. I found a bookmark poem on Shel Silverstein's site, (you should all know him if your took poetry somewhat seriously in elementary school) and made these card stock bookmarks for the kids. I enjoy planning and I relearn so much about the topic myself. Now I just have to decide what the best way to teach it is -that's the hardest and most exciting part. There are so many fun activities you can do with teaching poetry. 

By the way, April is National Poetry month!

Blessings,

1 Corinthians 10:24

Little Guy

I had to stop by my cousin's house today and got to spend time with this little guy. He is usually shy and does not want to go to people that he does not see often, but he went to me and kept wanting to play, eat with me, and hug me. I love toddlers.

Like I have been saying these days, "Kids are soo hard. But sooo worth it." 

Blessings,

Instantly: done at once

At out house, we hardly ever run out of milk. But when we do, it's a big deal. Monday night my sister texted me to buy milk after babysitting. I planned to go to Wegmans, but realized I did not have my credit card. 

 I got home and Lena's eyes went wide open. Before she could ask, I told her I did not have my card with me. Oh the tragedy. Oh the look of horror on her face. "You need to go to the gas station, you need to go now, and so on and so on..." My dad was ready to go out and get some. I told them how ridiculous it was. We are so used to getting what we want, and getting it "now."

This reminds me of Lena's NEED for a Vera Bradley lunchbox a few weeks ago. I ordered it after 5 minutes of her begging me. But that's another story. 

 When we want food, we expect to get it instantly and we usually do.

And then we get into this habit. We start playing a new instrument, we expect to be pro's in no time. We expect to be great at what we do (our careers) instantly. I keep saying "we." Maybe I shouldn't say that, but I'm sure I'm not the only one feeling this way. I see this in myself. It can easily become a lifestyle. I don't want to get caught up in expecting life to be this way because then we become impatient. We give up. We lose faith. We expect everything big or small, instantly.

We forget to be patient. To persevere.

  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness and self-control.

Galatians 5:22-23

Blessings,

Spring!

How does this season make you feel?

Although I love fall, I don't have time to enjoy it because it is such a busy time of year (in this season of life). I get back to school, and from there on out, the days fly. Then there's winter. The days are short, and nights are long and dark. Most nights you can't sit by the fire like you see in picture books. Instead, you are out and about, or doing school work.

But when Spring comes around, the days become longer, the snow melts, and the weather becomes warmer. With school you come to think: there's a light at the end of this tunnel! You slowly count down the weeks until the last day of school. I like school, I really do, but I get exhausted. Maybe that's why I got so excited to see the first signs of Spring.

For this Spring I have 3 goals:

1. Finish student teaching successfully

2. Graduate.

3. Figure out what I am going to do this summer, because what I do this summer will affect what I do in the fall.

Hope your goals are more exciting than mine!

Blessings,

Memories from a 3rd Grade Classroom

Tomorrow is my last day at my first student teaching placement. 

These are some things I don't want to forget.

"Who is she? She's doing a great job."

"How old are you?" The kids would ask. "20." Wide-eyes "You are so young!"

Random hugs from students during the day.

"Miss. L, I have to tell you something." 
"Ok, you can tell me" 
"...."
"I can't hear you. Whisper louder."
"Miss. L, I said I want to marry you."

"Do you have a boyfriend?"

"You seem to have a natural ability working with these kids, like it's second nature to you."

"You go to church?"
"Yes."
 So you don't eat meat on Fridays?"
"No, I do...."

"What kind of music do you listen to?"
"Christian."
What is your favorite band?"
"Casting Crowns. You can youtube them."

"I love you Miss. L"

"Miss. L, you are going to make a great teacher." (Kids/teachers would say this at such random times, and it always made me smile and encouraged me).

"I don't want you to leave. I want you to stay with us."

"R thinks you're cute. He told me."

"Do you have to leave?"

Do you still wonder why I love teaching and loving kids?

Atypical Tuesday Night

Today after student teaching, then work, and tutoring I did something I have not been able to do in a long time. I went over to friend's house and we had a relaxing Tuesday evening.

Tuesdays are my long days-they always have been since I started college. I got out of tutoring an hour earl, just as my cousin texted me to see if I wanted to spend the evening at a friend's house. 90% of the time my answer would be no because I always seem to have things planned, or be busy, etc. Today I was actually able to go and we had such a good time.

 We enjoyed out cheesecakes and talked-I think I did most of the talking. No, I'm sure I did most of the talking. 

We watched a "Christian" movie called Unconditional. I dislike most movies, but this was worth watching. It was beautiful and based on a true story. I do recommend it.

 Finally, Monday evening I found out I passed my NYS teacher certification exams. Another reason to celebrate with a relaxing evening. Honestly, I never thought God would be so gracious to me. I had already taken two exams (there's 4 total). This time I took the two remaining exams. One I had hopes I'd pass. The other one, I honestly took, just to "see how it is." I had no intentions of passing. I prepared myself mentally for taking it 3 or 4 times, because so many I've talked to have had to do that. But, once again God had mercy on me. I am so thankful. If I look tired in this picture, it's because I am! I have been trying to get most of my reflections done this last week, before moving onto my next student teaching placement.

Blessings,

 

Victor's 10th Birthday

On March 11th my brother Victor turned 10 years old. We celebrated on Saturday since the kids HAVE TO have a party. It's easy for me to believe he's 10 because he acts his age, and is soo smart.

Victor is such an independent boy. He was #7 and was the baby of the family for over 4 years, but he has always been so independent and smart! I remember when we were sending him off to kindergarten, he came in for testing. The teacher did not have a red crayon she she pointed to a orange-red crayon and said this is red. His reply was, "no that is not red, it is orange." My mom said it was so funny and he made all of them laugh.

 This is from the party we had Saturday. Another thing about Victor is when we tell him it is bedtime he knows the routine and does it. It took his older sister Lena such a long time to be able to understand what that meant. Same thing in the morning. My mom struggles to get Lena out of bed, and get her things for the day, while on the other hand Victor wakes up and does the morning routine-no problems. He is basically what you would call-an easy child. 

 For everyone's birthday my mom and I like to make a cake that they want. For instance, Leah wanted a butterfly cake for her birthday so we did that. Over the years we've made pool cakes, cookie cakes, turtle cakes, etc. This year Victor had a cookie cake, but I also made this Strawberry Jello cake from Natashaskitchen.com. Everyone (my aunts) loved it. I thought it was alright. That's another thing, it's not only Victor's friends that come, but their mothers as well. It becomes a social event.

Blessings,

Perfect Teacher

I used to be the perfect teacher. Until I found myself responsible for teaching a classroom full of students for a few weeks. I found myself always being anxious. At first all went well. Then I started teaching each week with the thought in mind that this week too shall pass. I could not wait for the weeks to be over. I had no desire to hang out, socialize, or relax. I was so anxious about everything going well at school. I started depending on myself and not seeking the Lord for strength.

Anxiety. I have never experienced such anxiety in my life. I am a person who worries a lot. But this was different. The past three weeks I could not eat during the school day. I ate an orange, or a yogurt because I knew I needed to. My hands would shake during the day, my mind never stopped thinking, and I constantly felt pressured. It all started with what I thought was an extremely bad lesson. My initial thoughts: how am I ever going to improve?? From there on out, I did not give myself a break. There were days I thought I should quite. I remember coming home one day and my mom telling me literally to relax, to go lay down and stop aimlessly pacing around the house.

I knew these thoughts and feelings were not from the Lord. I prayed. I prayed that God would give me wisdom and guide me and give me strength. He has. Last week was my "solo" week. It's basically teaching by yourself, without the teacher in the room. At the end of the week the teacher told me, "You did a great job." Those words made me sigh a sigh of relief. She has never said anything positive or negative about my teaching so I never knew what she was thinking. After my first few lessons we discussed what went well and what I should work on, but I already knew what I did and didn't do well so I would tell her and there was not much more to say.

Finally, God comforted me and sent people that would encourage me. I would literally hear teachers telling my teacher that I was doing a great job. I know that God did that for me. I am not writing this in a prideful manner-no not at all, but I am writing this to say that God cares so deeply for us and knows our needs. He knew I needed words of affirmation.

Today at lunch time I finally felt hungry. I thought all over again about how I would not want to do anything else. I know God used this experience to draw me closer to Him and show me that yes I can do this because God works all things together for good for those who trust God. It is so hard to place everything into God's hands sometimes, but once you do, God takes care of it all.

I am now just observing other classrooms and helping in the class since I completed my solo week and this placement is coming to a close. As I've said, now I see how God has worked all things together for good. 

 

Blessings,

Purposeful Friendship

I have never been one to seek out friendships or make them happen. I do not look to have a lot of friends. There are few people that I call friends.  There are a lot of people that I love and could be friends with but life gets busy and even if we wanted to spend time together, our circumstances prevent it from happening. So, when we see each other we talk and have a good time, then go our separate ways. That's life, and that's ok! 

 Some friendships in my life lasted a season, some lasted years, some will be renewed later in life, and some I assume will last a lifetime. I know that this is part of the Lord's plan. He knows when to bring people into our lives, and for how long. I don't have a lot of friends but I am beyond content with the friendships I have. God has really blessed me.  These two girls in the picture have served as such a blessing to me. Maybe one day I will write more on them because it will be worth remembering how the Lord has brought them into my life.

Having great friends means you better be a great friend. So, I don't know how my friends are still my friends. I love honesty-friends that tell you how it is even if it's a little painful to hear. I love generosity. I love friends that care. Most of all, I love friends who love the Lord. I love that with many of my friends I can talk to them about the Lord, ask for prayer, or advice for making a Christ-like decision.  I have a few friendships that the Lord has put me in, for a different purpose-to pray for them, and be like Jesus, so that they one day walk with the Lord.

I pray that God blesses me with friends that I can be a blessing to, and friends that draw me closer to Jesus. To me, the quality of a friendship matters 100x's more than the length of time a friendship lasts.

Blessings 

What Princesses Do

"This is what Princesses do" said Leah, when I asked why she was taking care of her babies in a Princess dress. She had a few days last week where she wore her Princess outfit all day. 

Leah always wants to sleep with me now. When my mom wants to take her away she never wants to go.

Everyday when I come home she runs to the door hugs me and says how much she's missed me. This past month she has started loving me so much-complete opposite of the last 3 years of her life! (PS-I think Andrew colored her doll's "hair").

 Nick decided to join the fun. I don't know what happened to the rule of "no playing in Lesya's room" but it is happening again.
Leah also says she wants to go to school now. She always used to say that she is going to stay home with mommy, but not anymore. She is such a character.

Blessings,

Respect for Teachers

All I do everyday, all I think most about everyday, is teaching. So, it should not come as a surprise that I will be blogging about it most in the next few weeks.

There is an expression out there-"those who can't do, teach." I think it is funny. But so far from the truth.

The more I student teach, the more gray hairs I probably get  I realize what a challenging and respectable job teaching is should be.

Simply put: You are responsible for the social, emotional, and intellectual growth of at least 18 students daily.

Managing 18 students in an educational setting is no small task.

Put all of that together and you have one anxious student teacher. I want to get things right sooo badly but it is a learning process. Most days I feel like I got it. Tuesday of this week though, I was walking the students down to music class and thought to myself that the classroom teacher might as well tell me that I should reconsider what I have wanted to do since 2nd grade. To teach. Today on the other hand, went so well. The Lord knew I could not handle two "bad days" in a row. (Well one lesson made it a bad day Tuesday).

It is so wonderful how the Lord works though. During my drive to and from the school, I listen to sermons and songs and they seem to be speaking straight to me through their encouraging words. I even read a devotional Tuesday morning that talked about not giving up because "I could do all things through Christ who strengthens me." If God has got me this far, he will help me to become the teacher I want to be.

Blessings,   

Classroom Fun

I can't believe it's been over a week since I blogged. Time is flying by so fast- I though it was only a few days ago that I'd blogged.

I'm on Winter break this week-my 1st time since starting college, but since I am "student teaching" I have it off. I don't feel like a student teacher at all. The 2nd week in the classroom-when I was only suppose to be teaching 1 lesson a day, I was already teaching 2-3 lessons. By the end of that week I was teaching 50% of the day. And now, I am doing all but 1 hour of the day . The other student teachers in my group say they are only teaching 1-2 lessons still. I'm blessed with the experience, but it is a lot of work. Not to mention, the grading and then entering the grades into the computer, meetings, school plays, teacher luncheons, and work I have to do for my supervisor. (I managed to get myself into a few "extra" things at the school-somehow this always happens).

So this was Valentines Day. We had a little party with big messes. Somethings you just have to let go-like realizing you cant always having the classroom "in order." The kids were so excited and had such a fun time. We watched a Valentines Day cartoon-Charlie Brown, The kids loved it.

After the kids left for the day we rearranged the room a bit. Now this looks like a classroom conducive for student learning. 

I've never wanted kids to call me by my last initial- L, but I did not want to put them through trying to remember how to call me so Miss. L it is.

 As I've mentioned above, teaching has been a lot of work but I am loving every minute of it. I sometimes wondered whether I love teaching for other reasons than "loving to teach children" because I do like the busyness of it, the structure, the leadership, etc. but those fears faded. My favorite parts of the day are helping and watching the kids learn and grow! I also always had this fear of "what if I'm not a good enough teacher-what if they do not understand anything I say" and even that fear was put to rest. They seem to "get" what I teach-Praise God! (I hope I did not say that too soon). I know it might seem silly-because "how hard is it to teach?" but I don't want the kids to suffer because of a student teacher's inability to be effective. Teaching is not as easy as it looks-at least in my opinion. 

I can't believe I have a little over 3 weeks left in this placement. I am going to miss these kids so much. Even in my short time there, I have grown to love them and am so happy to see them every morning.  

Blessings,

Storm Nemo

Hi all.

A few weeks ago in the morning I was driving to school and thought it was beautiful out, but pretty bad for driving.

Friday I was driving home in this. Storm Nemo was underway. Here it wasn't so bad but there were areas I drove through that were so much worse. I take a 15 minute long road home from student teaching. Of course, some schools did not find it necessary to dismiss early so I got lucky enough to enjoy the beautiful scenery for a long 40 minutes on what is usually a 20 minute drive. It was funny because the songs that kept coming on, on the radio related to how I felt about driving that day. The song lyrics that came on when I began to drive were "It's just a long way home" and then "I know the journey seems so long You feel you're walking on your own..." It just made me chuckle because it was a long way home and sure was all alone. Thank God for his protection.  

Blessings,

Natural Remedy

Hi all.

If you have a cold, try this because it works! Thought I'd pass it along... 

1 tsp raw honey 1/4 tsp cinnamon. Combine and swallow it in a gulp or dip it in a fruit or whatever.  Continue to do for 3 days, 3-4 times a day or when you no longer have a cold.

Blessings,

Student Teaching

Last Monday I began my student teacher placement. I can't believe I am already here. God is so good.

I have loved every minute of it so far. I have been doing a lot of small group instruction the first week so I could get to know the students and the routine. This week I am going to start teaching a Sky Calendar Unit and Native American readings along with writing tasks. I want to do a good job so badly and I know it won't always go as planned. I don't want those poor students to suffer because of a student teacher :/ Lord please help me...
I look back at my journey and can truly say that this is the Lord's will. God gave me this desire and I am so thankful I pursued it after soooo many doubts, in my own self. (Note to self: Next time I doubt myself in my teaching skills, (after tomorrow's lessons) read this post!)

Blessings,

Boundaries for Leah

A few weeks ago I told Leah she is no longer allowed to play in my room. She would come in here everyday and turn the room upside down. She would cut up paper into thousands of little pieces, bring all her "dollies" in here, leave crayons all over, walk all over my desk like a little monkey, jump on my bed and so much more. She loves my room. Whenever I ask her to clean up she is either too tired, she didn't make the mess, Andrew did it, or no one is helping her so she refuses to do it herself. When she wants to, she can do such a great job cleaning up! 

Anyway, she said "ok I won't go to your room." For a few days afterwards when she came in here, I'd say "Leah do you remember that you cannot play in here any more because you leave messes?" She would quietly walk out. It was so funny-she was taking it in such a "mature" manner. 

Anyway, today after a long 12 hour day I came home and saw baby high chairs with dollies in them, and cookies on my desk, and cookie crumbs in my bed. My first reaction was, Lord give me patience. My mom does not even get a chance to see the mischief they involve themselves in because they are always so speedy quick! My little cousin was over also, so they had even more fun. I got a picture later again, when they were on my bed, jumping. They are just so cute, but I had to make my expectations clear,-Leah you cannot play in my room. Maybe she will stay out of my room for a few days...

Blessings,

Set Apart

I could listen to this video over and over again. It causes me to think and think some more.  
I especially like it where she asks us to question what we put the majority of our energy into each day. It made me think about when I do my Bible reading, my praying? Usually before bed when I am tired and worn. 
There were other things I thought about. I hope this video serves as a blessing to you as it did for me!

Blessings,

Veggie and Dog Love

I planned on studying all day today, but when Diana told me to come over for a veggie burger I could not resist-I have not had one before.

It tasted soo good-I did not have high expectations but this burger exceeded them. I will definitely be making them myself.

Diana too, decided to plop the dog onto my lap. There was a bit of shrieking on my part, but I held the dog and even placed him back on the floor-well Diana made me. I came over with my book. This doggy was helping me study :) Later that afternoon I went in to observe parent-teacher conferences and had such a great time. It was a great learning experience and will help me to better know the students as I start student teaching on Monday! 

Blessings,

Dog Victory

I am afraid of dogs. Very afraid. As I've gotten older I've come to tolerate some dogs, like little dogs, unless of course they are running at me or next to me and I think they might jump up at me at any moment-then I run. (And they chase you- I know I shouldn't run). Anyway I've never held a dog or  cat because I get so scared of them. I know it sounds silly. Anyway, Roman and Alena got a dog and the first thing Roman did when I came over was put the dog in my hands. 

I actually held him for most of the evening while talking with Alena. I surprised my own self!! He even took a nap on my lap. Little by little I am starting to become more comfortable with dogs. They brought him over our house and the kids loved him! He is such a smart and obedient puppy.  

The brothers- they were watching football.

Blessings,

New Year. New Ministry Goals.

Today we had such a wonderful time starting off cell group meetings this year. New year-new cell group goals. Tanya did a beautiful job facilitating the meeting and I pray that God works through us as our goal is to become more involved in the community. 

The girls at our meeting. Not everyone was able to come. We talked about growing weary and realizing that it is through Christ we achieve greatness and He is all powerful. We might not realize why this or that is happening in our lives, but it is Christ who leads us and controls our every moment. 

And more importantly-the food. Just kidding.

Then we headed to our youth group choir party and a time to set new goals and desires in this new year, regarding our choir. I really believe the Lord can use us mightily/work through us to reach souls if we seek and serve Him in this ministry with all of our hearts. I need to remind myself of that constantly. In the midst of life's busyness I pray that I do not grow weary as we talked about at our cell group meeting today, to serve God daily, and in the church ministries He placed me in. 

How cute is the coffee/tea setup. I've learned to appreciate soooo much when others (like some of the youth this time) takes time to make fun things happen, and even more when they make things extra special and cute :)

 Blessings,
 

Sunday's Best

My brothers and cousin in my Sunday school class wearing their Sunday best :) They look too cute in their matching cardigans. I could already envision them as cute teenage boys in a couple of years!

Blessings,

Forgiveness

It’s the hardest thing to give away
And the last thing on your mind today
It always goes to those that don’t deserve

It’s the opposite of how you feel
When the pain they caused is just too real
It takes everything you have just to say the word…

It flies in the face of all your pride
It moves away the mad inside
It’s always anger’s own worst enemy
Even when the jury and the judge
Say you gotta right to hold a grudge
It’s the whisper in your ear saying ‘Set It Free’

It’ll clear the bitterness away
It can even set a prisoner free
There is no end to what it’s power can do
So, let it go and be amazed
By what you see through eyes of grace
The prisoner that it really frees is you

These are just some of the lyrics to the song-the lyrics that define forgiveness. 
I love the story behind this song Forgiveness by Matthew West. Check it out!

Blessings,

Little Peoples' Concerns and Conversations

Hi all.

Yep-she's mad but so cute even when she's upset. Last night I did not give her my iPad so she was pretty upset, but oh so cute in her little skinny jeans. She also said Lena is not her sister anymore because she "puts passwords on her ipod."

!

5 minutes later she was all happy :) I asked my mom if she was sad that Leah was growing up because I was. Leah responded, "no she is not sad because I will help her cook when I grow up." Earlier that day I hugged her and said why are you growing up so fasr?! Why are you such a big girl. She said, "because I am 4." I repeated myself and she got irritated and yelled with an attitude"because I am 4!"

Compare this

To this. They look so much older now, and so little in this picture.

Today I heard this little conversation between Andrew and Leah.

L: Sorry doesn't help
A: Yes it does
L: No it doesn't! (In her high pitched frustrated voice)
L: Ok how does sorry help
A: It forgives, like forgives other people
L: Silence
Lesya: Leah what did Andrew do to you?
L: Nothing. He said sorry helps, but sorry doesn't help. Andrew said it does.

Andrew said he said sorry because they were eating alphabet cheese-its and he ate part of her name. That was the trigger for this conversation. So funny.

(I was writing this on my phone as they were talking just so I did not have to rely on my memory when I go to write it down). 

Blessings,

Pinterest Fail

Pinterest has become such a "go-to" website for soooo many different things. I love just browsing and pinning things I will never maybe do. There is just so much. 
My favorite things to pin are recipes, and because the reviews are so great on so many of the dishes I am always anxious to try them. A few weeks ago I pinned a Honey Chicken recipe. 

Doesn't it look so good?? I thought it did and the comments were great regarding this chicken.

 
 Pinterest-Honey Chicken

I couldn't have disagreed more. It was not great at all. I did not mess up on the recipe. Let's just say the whole family ate and we still had plenty of leftovers. Clearly, it was not so great. How I love recipe fails. My aunt Nina did come over, and thought it tasted fine so I mean it was edible. I just always find it so hard to believe how people can talk so highly of not-so-great chicken dishes. 
Maybe they haven't had better? 

And another thing: American Cakes. I've given "American cakes" sooo many "chances" and Red-Velvet is their only decent cake in my opinion. American-cake lovers really need to try some Ukrainian cakes! 

I'll stop my rambling now :) 

Blessings,

Driving and Baby

Yesterday I got in my car to drive over to Tanya and Diana's house for a healthy vegetarian lunch. We wanted to hang out since I had just come home.
I felt like I had not driven in years although it's been a little over a week. When I was in Carolina, I remember thinking how much I missed driving. But at home, I tried not to complain about how annoying it got to get in and out of the car 8 times a day some days. One week I got to the point of just counting how many times I got in and out of the car to go somewhere, out of curiosity. Even with something like driving being removed from me for a week made me realize-"you never know what you got till it's gone." I should count it a blessing to be able to drive to get to places I need to go!

Diana played some guitar for me :) I love that has taken up this hobby of learning to play the guitar. She's definitely capable.

My aunt had a baby on January 7th so I visited them last night. This baby is sooo cute!!!! His name is Joshua. I miss having a baby at our house so much and love seeing my baby cousins.

Blessings,

Visiting Cousins

These are all snapshots I took when I was visiting my cousins in North Carolina. I wish I took more pictures but oh well. This last week was soooo out of the ordinary for me, but I loved it and it was such a wonderful getaway.

Philip who is already 12! He is such a nice sweet boy. Ever since he was a young child I was always so good and obedient. We went shopping one day, and were at the mall all day-by the end he was so tired but complained so little. He is so smart and fun to talk to.  

Diana and I. This girl has such a beautiful voice!! I played and she and Phillip sang Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone) at church. We had fun practicing and I loved hearing her sing other things too. She is also so girly amongst two boys!

Timothy or Tima as we call him was so much fun to be with. He is sooo smart for a 6 year old and is already reading chapter books!! I played pool with him and it was so cute listening to him explaining all of the directions to me :). He is the little boy that no matter how many times he gets in trouble you just can't stay mad at him. He will talk his way out, apologize and is so loveable!! I already miss him. 

I hung out a lot with the church youth and with my aunt we went to different places almost every day. I tried many new foods and of course, I can't not take pictures of food :)

I brought my school study book along (book 1 of 3) and studied sometimes. I was just listening to a sermon and the preacher was saying that handwriting activates the brain more, so I guess I won't be typing my notes out anymore! I'm praying God gives me strength to focus and wisdom for the next month in studying for two NYS exams.

Blessings,