Let It Snow, Let it Snow!!!

It has been so long since I updated my blog, I couldn't even remember my email address to sign in with! Wow!

Anyway, nothing really exciting is going on. I'm still working at the school & it's keeping me more than busy. Things have been better this year...I have an entire day devoted to just instrumental music classes. I love my B days for that reason. Then A days come & things get a little more challenging. But, the holidays are coming & that means long breaks without any school work. Yippee!!

What I really wanted to post about was the awesome "Winter Blizzard Warning" that has been issued for our state tomorrow afternoon & evening. According to the news reports, a blizzard warning has never been issued for our state. I've got plans Tuesday night, but I'll be happy to cancel them if this storm is as bad as predicted. Thankfully I don't have to work Wednesday morning & I can curl up in my apartment & wait for the storm to pass.

I think the only thing that could ruin this excitement would be if the power goes out. The power went out at my parents house a couple of years ago, during christmas break, & it didn't come back on for three days. Hopefully that doesn't happen, but I made some preparations just in case. I bought some new batteries for my lanterns & flashlights. I bought water & some food that I can eat without cooking. I've located the extra blankets & coats in case it gets really cold. I also filled the gas tank in my car. I'm feeling really "grown up" right now. We'll hope for the best, expect the worst. It's going to be an exciting week!!

I'm Sorry, My Life is Boring

I'm sorry I haven't posted in a long time. Summer was good. I loved every minute of it. I wish I never had to work & I could sleep in & do whatever I felt like doing & didn't have any deadlines or stress. But, there is opposition in all things, every good thing must come to an end, yada, yada yada. At least I know summer will come around again.

School starts on Monday. I've already spent the last two weeks cleaning, spending money, and getting ready. Overall, I feel good about this school year. That good feeling may not last long, but it's been nice so far. I've only had one nightmare. Usually at this time, I've had several. All you teachers out there know exactly what I'm talking about. It's normal "back-to-school" jitters. I'm sure the next week or two will be chaotic, but I know I'll survive, 'cause I've already survived it four times now. :)

In an effort to catch up, I went on two trips this summer. One to Washington DC with my friend Bekah & the other to Yellowstone/Grand Tetons with my family. Megan has posted pics of Yellowstone/Grand Tetons. They're still beautiful. I forgot how much I love the scenery there. Washington DC was awesome! I took tons of pics, but not alot with me in them. I also had a big job interview this summer. My dream band position came available & I interviewed twice for it. Eventually, they offered the position to a colleage of mine who's taught band for A LONG time. When I saw him at the second interview, I knew right away he was going to get it. But the whole process really boosted my confidence as a teacher. Even though nothing has changed for me, my attitude has changed. I feel like I'm on the right track, so far. On a spiritual note, the Lord definately has a plan for me. The path is different from the one I picked, but I need to have faith in Him. I'm here at this point for a reason. I don't know what it is, but I feel a quiet, calm, reassurance that everything is as it should be.

Well, I'm sure life is about to get more exciting now that school has started. I wonder how many lockdowns we'll have this year? I'll let you know!

Running Again...

I have a deep confession to make. Two years ago I started this blog as a journal. I wanted to record my training for my first race. I admit, it was a short, simple race, but a big deal to me. I've never been the athletic type & at the time, I'd never run in a race. I recorded all my training days and posted all the pictures from race day. When it was over, I stopped blogging for a while & I stopped going to the gym. It didn't help that school had started again & I was working alot. I kept thinking I would go back, but it never happened. I've visited the gym occasionally over the last 9 months; maybe a total of 10 days since last August. But obviously it doesn't do any good unless you do it consistently. Because of this, I have gained a lot of wieght & fallen out of shape.

Maybe it's the good weather that has inspired me, or the wonderful examples that I have from my family, but I've decided to start training again. There are plenty of 5k races over the next few months & I would like to run in a few. Not to be a world-class runner, but to give myself a reason to go to the gym. I need to exercise & I need a purpose besides work. And, I know that if I don't post my progress & check in with my blog, I won't perform as well. It's easy to talk yourself out of doing something if nobody knows you were going to do it in the first place. So, thanks for listening & holding me accountable.

NEWS FLASH: Today I left work at 3:10, headed to the gym, ran/walked 2 miles & came home. It wasn't my best work out, and I've lost alot of endurance, but at least I did it.

MOAB!!

I love spring break. It always comes at a much-needed time. Saturday, my family & I drove down to Moab to break-in our new camping trailer. We stayed in a group campsite near Dead Horse Point with several other families. Saturday was spent listening to conference & hanging around camp. I took my bike for a spin & walked around the local trails. Sunday we listened to more of conference & took a drive on the BLM land around our campsite. On the drive we saw an old well, a bunch of cows, & spectacular scenery. We drove all the way to the Green River overlook. Then we came back for dinner. Monday, we drove into Canyonlands & hiked up to Mesa Arch. About noon I had to drive home so I could get ready for work on Tuesday. It was fun to hang with family, see beautiful sites & relax a little bit. The weather was partly cloudy & little cold sometimes, but much better than Salt Lake's weather. The rest of my family is lucky. They get to stay for a couple more days.

Our Campsite (Circle of Trailers)...


Proof I can ride a mountain bike...


The old well in the middle of nowhere...


Picture taken from the truck...


The weather did cool things...


The Green River overlook...


Canyonlands, view from the visitors center...


Being blind doesn't stop him...


Mesa Arch...


The View through Mesa Arch...