The Sunrise Story

     Today this blog post is serving two purposes...my 19th slice for the March Slice of Life Challenge on the  Two Writing Teachers blog ...it's also my contribution for Spiritual Journey Thursday on  Holly Mueller's blog ! BRAVE. The first thing that comes to mind when I hear that word is this song...   I love this song...so much so that I bought a notebook with one of the lyrics on the cover... What does it mean to be BRAVE spiritually? There are so many verses about courage, about God walking with us...walking with me. I believe that. I believe that God is walking with me. I believe that I am never alone. My problem is allowing His voice in...with listening. I was looking up a quote and my entire blog post is changing direction. What does being BRAVE mean? I wanted to find the person who said, "Being afraid and doing it anyway". In looking for that quote, I came across this post from Momastery . She made me see those words in ...

Today is my 18th slice for the  March Slice of Life Challenge on Two Writing Teachers . Not enough time... Am I ready? Today I am working with teachers all day- Sub plans are done. Classroom is set up. My sixth graders are taken care of... What else needs to be done? Presentation for class number one is prepped. Videos created and uploaded. Activities set. Still need to make copies. Who is bringing snack? Grading and planning for class number two is done. Email reminders sent. Inspired by watching the growth of these teachers! Days like these provide valuable opportunities to learn, network, and thrive as educators...but, I'll miss my students today. There's never enough time!

Today is my 17th slice for the  March Slice of Life Challenge on Two Writing Teachers . Do you ever have days when your mind is spinning? I'm having lots of days like that lately. I'm thinking about...so much....and I don't know where to start. I have two other blog posts open and started, but nothing's making sense. I need time. Time to write and figure it out. That's what I do. When there's something in my life that I can't figure out...I write. When I am struggling with a problem...I write. When I feel hurt or alone...I write. When I want to celebrate and cheer...I write. What am I thinking about, you wonder? Hmmm....kindness, listening to each other, living in love, compassion, social media, right vs. wrong, gossip, megaphones, making choices, being thoughtful, considering before writing, friends, "friends", how fast the world is changing... That probably doesn't make sense...but it's like a glimpse into my brain. I needed...

Today is my 16th slice for the  March Slice of Life Challenge on Two Writing Teachers . Life moves so quickly during the week, things get disorganized. I have piles everywhere. Piles of clothes in the bedroom. Piles of dishes in the sink. I can't seem to keep up with it. (And I'm only one person...I have no idea how you mothers do it!!!) I've never considered myself one of those type A personalities...where everything has a place...but, one of my favorite things to do on the weekends is to organize a small space in my home. Sunday afternoon I cleaned and reorganized my bedroom. I spent lots of time on my night stand. Rearranging books. Dusting. Straightening up. Now when I walk into my bedroom, I smile. I feel like I've accomplished something. Being neat and organized brings order to my life.

Today is my 15th  slice for the  March Slice of Life Challenge on Two Writing Teachers . Rebeccalee wrote a beautiful post about the routine of Sundays, so I'm going to write one of my own. (Thanks for the inspiration, Rebeccalee!)  Sundays have always been an important day in my week. Growing up, Sundays were family days. Church. Sunday dinner at Grammy & Papa's house. Family. When I moved to Virginia and away from family, Sundays were always hard for me. I spent a lot of time paying attention to that day and making it special. I'm in a season in my life when Sundays are one of my favorite days of the week. My day starts with church. Greeting friends and listening to uplifting music and feeling God all around me...it's what I need every week! Church is followed by a trip to Target or Wegmans. If I go to Wegmans (a huge grocery store that has a FOOD COURT inside it), I usually bring schoolwork or reading or writing and sit upstairs for a few hours befor...

Today is my 14th  slice for the March Slice of Life Challenge on Two Writing Teachers . Thank you Ruth for this opportunity (and reminder) to celebrate this blessing called life! I celebrate breakfasts with friends! I'm about to spend Saturday morning with some of my favorite people in the whole wide world...eating breakfast and catching up. We've been friends for over twenty years! (I'll add pics later today!) I celebrate the power of books! I'm loving Jen Hatmaker's new book For the Love ! That's all I can say right now, but here's a quote that I LOVE... I celebrate Vanillapen. My favorite new app! It creates amazing posters!! It cost $5, but to me it's worth every penny! You'll see more quotes on here now! Here's my OLW... OK, my other new favorite app is Plant Nanny. It reminds me to drink water. It's a cute app that was recommended to me by a friend. The more water you drink, the more your plant grows. I...

Today is my 13th  slice for the  March Slice of Life Challenge  on  Two Writing Teachers . My friend Jessica is blogging with her students and she wrote this post  about things they didn't know about her. It inspired this post of mine:  10.  I attended only one year of public school (kindergarten)...Catholic school for the rest (even college and graduate school). 9. I was an exchange student in high school...I lived in Valencia, Spain for a summer. 8. I was twenty years old when I first ate a cheeseburger (prior to that all my burgers were cheese-free)! 7. I've written in notebooks since the 80s. I have every notebook and I am on #62. 6. There are at least five people in my family with the name Mary: Mary, Mary Ann, Mary Jo, Mary Lou, and Mary Jane. (The first 3 Marys are sisters!) 5. I took a writing class in college and was writing partners with Amy Poehler (from Parks & Rec). She was so kind and funny and smart! 4. My all time...