Mountain Retreat

We were able to get away before Easter Sunday! I had Good Friday off so W & I took off Thursday night for the mountains. We stayed in W's brother's place (while they were on vacation) on the Young Life WoodLeaf Campus. It was SO great to get away, hike, hang out, and relax. We also practiced archery and W really got into chopping wood..you know, manly outdoor stuff like that! :) And our dogs did fabulously! Especially, Pancho! He's king of the mountain. He did some off-road trailing, went into the lake a little bit, and overall rugged! We were both amazed. It was gorgeously green, chilly and beautiful!! We loved it!

Fun Friday

It all started with a visiting friend who I haven't seen in awhile!! We caught up while she was up here for her spring break! Too early in the morning...  :)

It all continued with Happy Hour at Redcoats with some of awesome girls, then ended at my parents' house for dinner with Grandma & Uncle Jon (who's also visiting from out-of-town).  

After dinner & desert are over!

William enjoyed practicing his BB skills too!

Sweet Secret

We found a new yogurt shop, Yolatea, downtown on Wednesday when we walked our dogs. I can tell I'm going to love this place. I'll probably single-handedly keep it running: crepes, self-serve yogurt machines with toppings, gelato, and tea! Yum! The building use to be a hardware store but is now changing into a bank and this yogurt shop. Now, it's no YogurtShack in Danville, but the walking distance can't be beat. And I loved my Bavarian Mint Gelato!!

My New Favorite

Last night, my friend Sarah hosted a jewelry party in the gorgeous hills of Oakland. I was aware of the jewelry since the owner had a daughter is Sarah's class. And Sarah wears many of the beautiful pieces. But I definitely was hooked last night!! The woman started the jewelry company, Twisted Silver, in 2004. And it's totally my kind of style..funky, cute, classy, and one-of-a-kind. I walked away with these pieces:
Pulse Drop Earrings
Zen bracelet
Bubble bracelet (a gift from the designer herself!!)

They are all so cute--versatile for casual or dressy outfits. I'm a huge fan & plan on purchasing a few more pieces. And apparently, many of her pieces have been worn in fashion shows, magazines, and by celebrities (including the newest A.I judge)...sounds like she's been very successful.

Even Though

Even though I got my pink slip on Monday, this week was really good! Weird. Not that the report card part was great, but they weren't as bad as I thought they were going to be. We went over to my folks' house for dinner Wednesday night for dinner. W & my mom cooked while I did report cards and my dad chilled after a long day at work. We hadn't seen them in awhile so it was great to catch up and of course, watch our American Idol with them too!

Dad talking & W measuring...
Mom stirring...
And me report carding...

Babies Everywhere!!!

Yes, we sure feel like it. W & I were talking today to two different friend couples that just found out they are pregnant. Really, there are SO many families we know with newborns or growing bellies! We babysat last night for a family with a newly added third. Little Knox, at only 1 month old, was so adorable!! We kept fighting over who would hold him as we watched American Idol. He was so precious as he slept!! W got to feed him which was so cute!

Ok, we'll admit we have a bit of baby fever...we'll see how much longer we can hold out while W is in school. Hooray for such wonderful blessings! :) Here's to our lovely people we know with babies--Sarah, Tara, Kirsten, Layla, Becca, Noah, Carolyn, Jill, Jill, Stefanie, Shannon, Lindsey, Tara, Melissa, Caris, Julie, Rachel, John, Ruthanne, Amy...

I've Been Served.

Yup. It's true. Today, I was officially pink-slipped (yes, it's a verb now). I received a notice last year, but, of course, this year it's much more doom and gloom within our whole country. And the education arena is no exception. Even the numbers at our site are low, so my actual spot won't be there next year regardless of the budget. So I have no clue where to go from here. I've been so thankful to stay at the same site in the same grade (quite unheard of for beginning teachers). Sadly, I'll be packing up my stuff come June and hope for the best. W and I have been praying for direction because I'm really uncertain about my next course of action. But we know that God is good, in control, and faithful...so... we'll see what happens!

The Good, the bad, the ugly

Right Here.

Struck

I was really struck by this post from Tim Challies. Oh, how I am thankful that if we get the honor of having boys, I have William to help me raise them into men. He's really good at using his strength, knowledge, and ability to help others (thanks, Boy Scouts & Swenson Ladies!). And I see how truly a rarity it is in grown men and even my growing students.

It's raining, it's pouring...

Willliam bought our dogs some raincoats! And so far, they hate 'em. We hope they grow to love them in time! They sure look hilariously cute!! And I got a good long laugh out of it too. :)We've been loving all the rain & how green it's makes everything! So beautiful!! And we've been having lots of fires to keep us warm & cozy. I'm thinking about planting my veggie garden again this year too. I can't believe it's March already!!! Wow!