I wish I could do this!

My mom is talented in several different things! She's quite an impressive woman, one that I love to spend time with, learn from and laugh with. She is smart, funny, creative and extremely discerning about people. She is definately the one that taught me to trust that gut instinct about things and people and she is GOOD at it. Well thats all for another time another blog. I wanted to share with you guys a part of my mom's creative side.

She started drawing when she was 21 (which is when I was born, so I think I brought it out in her or maybe drove her to it...). I can remember coming home from school and she would be wearing her huge headphones, jammin to Elton John or who knows what, and drawing! There was always something going on her easel in our house growing up. I can still remember being very annoyed when she made me stop doing something (I am sure it was so important) and come position my hand in some way and hold it there so she could look at it to help her draw.

Even today when I look at her stuff, I always think, "How does she do that? How can you get a blank piece of paper to do that, to make that." I can't seem to get my brain around it. The gift skipped me, it could very well be in Jessica from what we can tell. That would be neat. I was watching Jessica paint one day and I remember stopping in my tracks thinking, wow she looks just like my mom when she draws or paints.

Well I wanted to share a picture of a painting my mom is working on at the moment. She use to draw people, but I think she has come to prefer the company horses so they are the main theme of her work.

Enjoy your fine art moment of the day:

September?

September, September where for art thou, September...

I can't believe my last post was on September 12th! Yikes! It may still feel like the summer time here in Texas but my schedule certainly points to the fact that fall has arrived. It really hasn't "arrived" that sounds way too calm, it's more like it bulldozed or blindsided me like some of the hits I have seen on TV with the arrival of football season.

Within in this "transistion" time of re-entering the work world, the sports world also begun. Therefore, so did my regular duties of equipment manager, team driver, head cheerleader and snack chic (I coordinated the snack schedule for Joshua's baseball team and I am insisting that I be referred to as the snack chic instead of the snack mom, snack mom sounds like some over bearing, "mom jean" wearing woman who has nothing else to do but worry about what her little boy is ingesting, and it pains me to think that I might be thought of that way. So from here on out it's snack chic! capish?) wew, how was that for a side note!

All that to say, life is busy. I don't dread the sports at all. I know that makes me in the major minority. I was observing life around me the other day as I was walking into the ball fields and I was just saddened by it all. Irritated, stressed out moms barking at their kids, kids looking a bit wearied, some crying cause they lost the game, dad's heavy burdened with lawn chairs and looks of obligation. I just wanted to say, "Why are you out here? if you don't like it, don't do it." Why do we ALL seem to think that sports is somewhere in this mysterious, never ever seen, handbook of parenting? I didn't do sports growing up and I am somewhat normal! (Hmmmm, maybe that is the real underlying reason I don't "play well with others!) HA!! Anyway, I get a great joy from watching my kids enjoy their sports and if and when they find some other passion, I will get great joy from that as well. It's not the actual sport that I care about, it's what life in all it's experiences brings to my children, whether it's baseball, soccer, art, reading, guitar, etc. Now if I could just get all those unhappy faces I saw the other night, to just see it my way, wouldn't that be better!

Well, here are some sporty pics from lately. Joshua has a game tonight so I will continue in all my jobs of equipment manager, driver, head cheerleader (this just means loudest) and snack chic!

All I have to say is no homerun=no dinner! Thats how we handle it at the Havard house! ha ha!!

That's Joshua behind the plate

She looks good in bright orange!!

blogging/running/blogging/running

Many times while I am running I start to think about blogs I could write. The pounding of the pavement must do something to the memory part of my brain because it seems that all the blogs I write in my head never really make it to the "post section"

So I decided I should blog about running. I have been trying to get back in the swing of running and slowly begin to increase my mileage to get ready for the Dec. 9th Half that I signed up for. By the way, I tripped the other day during a run and didn't fall, but it was quite telling that my second thought was, "hmmm, if I would have taken a hard fall or twist of the ankle, no half for me" I could bow out ever so ungracefully, but yet not really "wimp" out, which my pride absolutely will not let me do! Aren't I kinda pathetic! My first thought you ask? Well of course it was "oh man I hope no one saw that!"

Ok so to stay positive I decided to write some things about running that I like, a top ten list of some sorts (not sure yet if I will get to 10)
1. I love a "good" run, this isn't exactly easy to define, if you are a runner you know what I am talking about. You just feel strong, and light on your feet.
2. I love an early morning run. It's really hard to get out of bed, but once I am out, I love to watch the world slowly wake up. It's very peaceful.
3. I love the "alone" time that running gives me. You see I have VERY little of this now that I am teaching. I wake up to get family up and going, we all 3 go to work/school, I then take care of 22 little critters all day, send them home and we all 3 head home from work/school etc.
4. I love it when I am running and I actually forget that I am running. I call this my "happy place" It's a fragile spot, hard to get to and even harder to stay there.
5. Sprinklers!! I love to run through sprinklers. It cools you down. I will go out of my way to get to a sprinkler if I see one. However it's kind of a cosmic "psych" when I spot one, head towards it, and then poof right before I get to it, it turns off.
6. I love it when a song comes on my Ipod that matches my stride. I know they make fancy shoes that can do that, but my stride is so slow that all the songs would be played in slow motion.
7. I love it when I see the finish line. I always get a little burst of energy knowing I am about to be done!
8. hmmmmm.... ok so 7 is good! Right?

Here's a new one ladies...

I am sure we could all recite some cheesy pick up line that some guy actually thought might work, but I just heard one this week that would have definitely swept me off my feet.

"Do you want to be my girlfriend? You're hot and I REALLY like the way you color in the lines."

This was the latest pick up line heard by niece in her 1st grade classroom last week. Hilariously sweet! I think she accepted til mom "clarified" a few things with her that evening.

Trying to keep up

Ok so I have made through the 2nd week of teaching. I feel quite haggard, hurried, and sometimes overwhelmed, however in the moments that I get to close my classroom door to the rest of the world and just be with the students attempting to teach them something, I am very content. My goal as a teacher isn't just to get them to pass that lovely test that the state of Texas gives, but it's also to show them that a teacher can care about them, yet have high expectations, smile and have fun, yet also get down to business when necessary. I never achieved this when I taught 10 years ago. My first year was chaotic, way to much "raising" my voice over their voices etc. so then for my next two years I taught, I was not what the students would call a "nice" teacher. I swung the pendulum way the other direction and smiled less often and demanded quiet. It was calm, but not fun for me or for the students. SO 10 years have passed and I have had some of the best teacher training available to anyone! Motherhood! My two have taught me more about how to be a teacher than any college prof or text book could! They helped me capture the "heart" of being a teacher. When I am frustrated or trying to work with a student, I just step back and think, how would I want Joshua and Jessica's teacher to treat them right now and go from there.



So I pretty much run like a mad woman from 5 AM til I crash around 10, so the blogging looks like it might get done once a week. Just FYI if you're frustrated with me.



Training update:
OH MY!! It's hard to work in working out! I am trying though.
Tuesday Ran 3 miles
Wednesday went to the gym in the early morning (there were a surprising number of crazy people up there at that early hour)
Thursday: ran just under 3 miles, lack of time, lack of energy
Friday I am going out to dinner with my husband (oh wait that probably doesn't count, but i felt you should know.)
Sat: plan to run 4 (does that count?)

Man that apple picture is ginormous! I didn't mean to paste a GIANT apple on there, but I am too tired to change it.

Superman!!!

I wanted to take a moment and give a little public praise to my man Chris!!! I was talking to a friend this morning about the first week of school etc. and she asked, "So was Chris SuperChris this week?" I laughed and said of course, which set me to thinking and now blogging about how awesome my husband is to me.

He has been super extra sweet to me all week. I think he might be fearful that I could go over the edge at any moment since I am going back to work after a 10 year hiatus. It's not very pretty when I go over the edge!! I am just kidding, he really truly does spoil me rotten all the time!

Monday started my first day of work, and he was up and out early to get me my favorite: taquitos from Whataburger and then he sent me out the door with a funny card with some very encouraging words to start my week off right.

He grocery shops on Fridays and ladies, I don't mean he just grabs some milk and bread and forgets everything else. He gets everything, puts it away and even takes all the fruit and washes it, cuts it up so it's ready to go. Dreamy!

This week he went above and beyond the call of duty and even returned a dress of Jessica's that didn't fit and picked out another one, the right size and VERY cute. I told him that I was very impressed and he replied, "I wasn't born yesterday, you know"

One night he took care of bedtime routines with the kids so I could attempt a run. I came home and the house was all quiet. They had bathed, brushed, read and were off to sleep.

Friday he picked up a yummy dinner for us from Central Market and we actually sat just the two us in the dining room and ate together. That was nice.

I love this guy not just because he is "SuperChris" but for so many other reasons as well. He works hard at his job and makes a difference in many peoples lives everyday. People at the Heights just love him and that is so rewarding for me to watch. He loves his kids and is a very good dad! Always wants what's best for them and willing to sacrifice for that. He wants our marriage to be awesome and healthy and is always willing to do what it takes to help us make that happen.

So just a little public praise and thank you to my hottie hubby!

I love you Chris.

I know I don't deserve him, but I sure am glad I have him!