Chicks Ahoy!!

Hola!  I am usually not a procrastinator, but as I am sitting around my living room with boxes piled high to the ceiling I can easily think of a million things I "need" to do besides the obvious...packing.  So here I am doing what probably should not be on the top of my to-do list right now...posting a blog! 

Last week I went on a cruise with 8 of my amazing friends.  We all had so much fun!  Our cruise stopped at two places.  Our first stop was Progresso, Mexico and our second stop was Cozumel, Mexico.  Our days were full of laying out, sight seeing, and running around Passion Island (or doing back flips in my case). And our nights were full of dancing and singing on the ship.  We had very big social lives on the ship...it was quite exhausting if you ask me, but we somehow managed.  :) 

Since our vacation mainly consisted of being confined to a ship in the middle of the ocean, there was a lot of bonding and inside jokes being made.  We have so many that half of our conversations do not make sense to people listening in or they have no idea that what we are saying is an inside joke (which is always funny). One inside joke in particular involved "worry dolls."  We found them in Texas the night before we left and joked about how much I love them.  I had them as a child, which my friends found to be pretty funny because I worry constantly.  I am also always trying to find ways to stop worrying.  Anyone who knows what worry dolls are will know that they are EVERYWHERE in Mexico.  Worry dolls originated from Guatemala.  There is a legend amongst the Highland Indian villages of Guatemala: "If you have a problem, then share it with a worry doll.  Before going to bed, tell one worry to each doll, then place them beneath your pillow.  While you sleep, the dolls will take your worries away." 

Like I said before, the trip was amazing!  I made friendships that will last forever and became even closer with dear friends I already had.  I will love them forever, everything about them!  And I will miss them even more now when school starts back up!  Jack and I move into our new house on Thursday so I should probably get back to packing before I have to get my worry dolls out!

Love always,
Lizzie

All nine of us on the morning we left.

Our first night on the ship.

Placing my worry dolls under my pillow.

All of us with Katie Austin (country singer-you should check her out!)

Life Lessons

I have always loved blogs.  Since Jack and I are moving I thought this would be the perfect time to start one.  About a month ago Jack and I received the exciting news that he got the job he has always wanted in OKC.  This past month or so has been a whirl wind of driving back and forth between Tulsa and OKC trying to find our new home and where I am going to work.  But before I go into detail about our exciting new adventure, a reflection of my past seems to be the perfect place to start this blog.

While I am VERY proud of my husband and I am excited for what the future is going to bring us....I am a creature of habit...I prefer as little change as possible in my life.  I LOVE Tulsa and everything about it.  I have the best family and friends a girl can ask for here so it is not easy for me to leave.  I also had the best job here.  I taught at a high school with the BEST people and students.  I had studied how to be a teacher for four and a half years before actually teaching, but nothing prepared me for what having my own classroom and my own students would be like.  Teaching my students these past couple of years was one of the best learning experiences I have ever had.  I worked with the most amazing people and made friendships that will last forever.

Working with true friends is a huge blessing.  We were all a team and helped each other out 100% of the time when needed.  In a week I am going on a cruise with some of the amazing people I worked with.  The people I worked with were not the only thing I loved about my job.  My students taught me some of the greatest lessons in life. They reminded how important unconditional love is and what it really means to be there for someone.  They were a constant reminder of how important it is to always be yourself.  And while I will miss everyone sorely next school year, I have gained so much knowledge about teaching from these past couple of years and I will always hold the school (and town) and everyone in it dear to my heart.  I am not sure how much The Hunger Games or Algebra 1 will help me with my new teaching job, but I know I will be a stronger teacher at my new school because of everything I learned.

In one week I go on a cruise and then as soon as I get back it will be time to pack up and head to our new home!  Stay tuned... (if you want!)