Happy Thanksgiving everyone! In keeping with tradition, I would like to share what I am most thankful for this year.

I am most thankful for my ability to BE thankful. I am thankful for all of those times of total contentment when I find myself wanting nothing. The times when I am simply watching my daughter and my husband interact and my heart swells so much it aches. And I know that there is nothing better than being right there in that moment, soaking it all up and filing it away in my memory. A perfect moment.

My life may not be perfect, but so many hours of each day are nearly. And I am thankful that I am just fine with nearly.

The ten months have flown by and it is time we considered our housing options again. We told ourselves that after our lease was up at the beginning of the year, we would be buying our first home. Up until now we have always rented.

So we have been home shopping all month. We have put offers in on not one, not two, but THREE homes. Apparently, despite the current market, sellers aren’t willing to go down more than three or four thousand dollars on the price. In one case, the builder wouldn’t even take the asking price.

We are constantly scouring the internet for homes. We drive around looking on the weekends. We’ve looked at between fifteen and twenty homes with our realtor. I’ll be looking at some more this week with the realtor.

Jeremy? Is ready to build. He is convinced that is the only way we can get exactly what we want. He’s probably right. We’ve been looking at fixer-upers so that we can make them into what we want, but even homes that need a good amount of work have ridiculously steep prices attached. We will see.

All of this makes for some stress. Add some changes with Jeremy’s job , and other family issues into the mix and we’ve been a little stressed. Not to mention that someone turned 29 last Thursday and he’s not happy about it!

We work up some excitement over homes as we pour over them on the internet. Then we go look at them, and are seriously disappointed half of the time. I feel like we’ve looked at so many I can’t keep them all straight and need to go look at a few a second time. So that’s what we’re doing.

We started off all enthusiastic. But we’ve wained. The thrill is nearly gone. We’ve gone back and forth. We want a nice home with some upgrades in the neighborhood behind the shop. No, we want land! With a shop! And a pool! Erg.

And now we’ve come up with a completely new plan. We’ll see. I’m just glad it means I won’t be trying to move us days before Christmas! NO thank you.

A few weeks ago we headed out to the Oil Ranch. That place was awesome. We went with a huge group of friends (saved on admission that way, thankyouverymuch). There was so much to do. The kids had such a blast. We were actually experiencing fairly cool weather for mid-October, so we were really soaking up the whole “autumnal” vibe. It really felt like fall. That’s not real common here in Texas.

There is a little train that takes you around part of the ranch:

There was fake machinery to take pictures in front of (heh). Not sure what it is, exactly. An oil pump?

There were pony rides. Hali’s very first. She LOVED it!

And as we were leaving, every kid got to pick out a pumpkin to take home:

There was also a little petting zoo type area with farm animals, you could milk a cow, there was a hay maze, volleyball, playground equipment, and several other things that we just didn’t have time to do. We’ll have to go back next year!

Every year the library does a “firefighter” theme one week for all the kids. This year they read books about firefighters and then did a related craft.

The past two years, we lived in a larger town and there was a whole shabanga-bang at the larger county library. The firefighters came in with their gear, they talked to the kids about their jobs, fire safety, etc.

The mom’s oogled the firefighters. Seriously. It was so ridiculously obvious it was hilarious.

But each year, no matter which library, we all went outside afterwards to check out the firetruck that the firefighters brought with them. And every year Hali is too afraid/shy to approach the firetruck. The other kids are holding the hose, climbing around in the cab, checking out all the gear, etc. Not Hali. She would scream and cry until I took her back inside.

This year? She’s all grown up! Yay! It took her several minutes to warm up, but when she saw her friend getting in the truck, she decided she’d do it too.

She still wouldn’t look the fireman in the face, but baby steps, people, baby steps! We lucked out- because we were the last to leave (Hali really did take a while to warm up to it all) we watched them pull out of the library parking lot. They turned on the sirens, honked and all that as we stood there. The kids (ok, and their moms) were very excited.

“The situations and experiences we face in life reflect what Heavenly Father really knows about us and what we need to make weak things to be made strong.”

That quote is actually hanging on the wall just above my laptop in the office so that I can look up at it often. It gives me a feeling of strength and comfort every time I read it.

Thanks for hosting, Strawberry Kisses and of course Three Buttons for This is..

I’ve been tagged a couple of times recently, so here they are in one fatal swoop:

7 Weird/Random Things About Me ( I was tagged by Kalisha and Reneca):

I’ve actually written about some very weird things about me before here. So it wasn’t easy for me to come up with seven more things. But here they are:

1. I like for my cereal to be slightly soggy.

2. I am 5′7 yet I wear a size 6 shoe. Needless to say, my feet are freakishly small.

3. I have a mole on my butt. So does my daughter. So does my mom. So does my grandma. Apparently it’s genetic.

4. My great-grandma will be 91 in a few weeks. Yes, that is right- I have a living GREAT-GRANDMA! That means that Hali has a GREAT-GREAT-GRANDMA! She is the most wonderful lady in the world. I mean it. If we were all a little more like my Great-Grandma Sanders, the world would be a better place. She is an incredible lady- up until a couple of years ago she still mowed her own lawn. She still lives in her own home, though her huge family comes by all the time. She baby sits for her great-grandchildren.

5. I hate green beans. And okra. I hate tomatoes as well, but not tomato products.

6. I’m planning on voting, but not for McCain or Obama.

7. I have an odd fascination with maps and geography. I always have, even as a kid. I think I have passed it down to my daughter, who can spend hours asking me what country it is that she is pointing to.

6th of 6th is a meme where you post the 6th picture of your 6th photo album or something like that, so thanks to Connie, here it is:

It is a picture of Hali blowing out the candles (with my assistance) on her 2nd birthday. This was when we lived in Idaho, so we had my whole family over and they were all forced to endure all that is Dora. We all wore Dora party hats, ate Dora cake off of Dora plates, drank from Dora cups, used Dora napkins, and all of these were placed on a Dora table cloth.

Jeremy and I hate drama. We loath it. Real life is stressful enough without adding unnecessary drama to it.  We enjoy our quiet, peaceful bubble-like lives. We go to great lengths to avoid drama. More and more lately, this means avoiding a certain family member.

In addition to our aviodance of that family member, Jeremy frequently has to just not answer his phone when it rings, because there is even a woman who constantly calls him so that she can complain to Jeremy about all the drama that is going on with her friend, who happens to be Jeremy’s boss. Yes. Can you say uncomfortable?

It seems to me that there are people who are in our lives (and that is not going to change, so we deal with it) that love this stuff. They thrive off of drama. They are never happy unless there is some major drama going on. No drama? Fine. They’ll make some drama. Better yet, they are going to call you and get you involved in it too! Because they would hate to be so selfish as to not share the wealth! Hey- I’ve just stewed up a big batch of drama! I should share!

It is honestly starting to seem like a soap opera here. I feel like Jeremy and I are the narrators of some cheap poorly done drama. All around us, the people in our lives are creating all this drama for themselves and we are the commentators who just sit back and scratch our heads. And the actors in this drama will not take any direction. They’re just wandering aimlessly about.

And of course, I can’t blog about all the stuff that goes on.

*** Edit*** The hubs says it’s not a good idea, and he’s right, so no “fiction” for me.

Without even realizing it we had alreatsdy started a sort of “unit study” approach to our preschool, where we focused on one thing or area at a time, moving along each week or other regular interval. So imagine my surprise when I was reading up about all the different approaches and curriculum out there and DUH! the unit study approach was the best fit for us.

The OCD, organizational freak that I am loves this. and the slightly obsessive Hali does as well. We really do best when we focus on one thing until we are done with it. So far, she really absorbs everything well and doesn’t forget much of what she has previously learned. I’m sure that next summer will be spent doing a little review before kindergarten starts, but I’m honestly not too worried about it.

I love the flexibility of unit study as well. I can sort of plan units out so that they coincide with a field trip or holiday. In addition, we have plans to meet up at least once a week with some friends who are also homeschooling or in preschool. We’ll get together for outings, field trips, or just simple activities that have to do with each unit we are studying. This just really adds to the fun of it all for Hali (and for me- adult conversation! Yay!) and also helps to take care of the socialization aspect.

This is an idea of how you might go about planning a unit, and it is very nearly how I planned mine, though I did mine on a grander scale. Putting units together can basically be as time consuming as you want them to be. You dont’ have to plan every tiny little thing out, just make a list of things that need to be taught and run with it.

I’ve found some great local activities that can be tied into a few units, so I have scheduled the units to correlate with, say, when the local children’s museum is doing a class on dinosaurs.

For the next couple of weeks we will be learning about seasons and more specifically fall. This coincides with, obviously, the season we are in now, but also several activities we have planned like going to a pick-you-own pumpkin patch. Things that we would be doing anyway, but can become a learning experience and a reward at the end of the week.

I really am loving this whole homeschooling thing! Every time we start and finish a unit. Every time we go out for some fun with other homeschoolers. Every time I get to experience first-hand Hali’s eyes lighting up when she figures something out. I’m pleased with our decision to homeschool and I couldn’t be happier about getting this extra year with my Hali at home!

Gut. Pooch. Mama Poochie. Muffin Top. Butt in the Front. Would that anything else so sweet might go by more wonderful and splendidly sweet sounding names? You? Are my constant companion these nearly five years now.

How I love thee. Let me count the ways:

Chocolate

Cookies

Desert

Fried Chicken Sandwiches

Bread

Potatoes

Mexican Food (preferably from Racheros or Los Cucos)

Chinese Food (Double Dragon)

All eight of you love my gut so. You continue to love it, clinging to it like a kid and their security blankie. Never letting go. Always inviting more to join in and share your joy, thus expanding your reach. And reach you have. All the way past the top of my jeans.

I thought I had defeated you. Yet there you are. Determined to hang on, despite the twice weekly Body Flow classes at the local Gold’s Gym. How you must love me, despite my best efforts to be rid of you. I’ve even tried to convince myself that I loved you back and that you and I had a healthy relationship. We do not. You are becoming a major hindrance. You are in the way. Can’t you tell when you are no longer wanted? Why are you not taking the hints? Must I be more blunt? Fine.

It’s time to leave. Take some cellulite from my thighs with you in case you get lonely. Oh, and take some arm with you- they’re very friendly. They wave back at you when you wave.

After reading several books on education, I am aware of just how much I can influence Hali’s educational experience, even now at the age of four. Not just the effect that I have on her, but the effect that her future teachers will have on her.

Looking back at our educational careers, we can all remember certain teachers. Teachers that inspired us. Teachers that really managed to connect to us and in turn connect us to a certain subject.

My first writing professor in college. My senior year English teacher. My senior year Marketing Dynamics teacher (co-op). My sophomore year Biology teacher. My junior high history teacher. All teachers who really helped fuel my interest in their respective subjects.

Unfortunately, we can all remember a few teachers that were less than inspiring as well. Everyone has a tale or two of the woes of The Bad Teacher. The ones who probably had no business teaching in the first place (I believe my own mother got one of my brother’s teachers fired who would fit the description). The ones who just honestly clashed with us.

My third grade teacher. One of my fourth grade teachers. My Algebra 2 teacher (might I add that her’s was the only class I had ever failed? And that I retook it in summer school and aced it?).

Then there are the ones who we might not remember as well right away. While I maybe wasn’t very interested in or particularly talented in the subject that they taught, I recognize that they were clearly good teachers. They honestly wanted me to succeed and were willing to help me. They were obviously wonderful teachers who loved to teach for the sake of teaching. For me, these teachers are quite memorable as well.

I respected these teachers, because they respected their students. They understood that not everyone is going to easily succeed in the subject. Not everyone is going to have a natural talent for it. Many students learn differently and they were willing to adapt to that. Those teachers- the ones who are not stuck in their ways. The ones who will change or adapt their teaching in order to more efficiently help all their students. Those are the truly good teachers. Those are the teachers we want educating our children.

I just wish I felt more confident that I will find those good qualities in Hali’s teachers when she enters school next year. I really hope we are pleasantly surprised next year.

Who was your favorite teacher?