Why I love my job...haha

Whew, it has been a while.  In May, I was trying to work as much as possible the last month of school.  In June, I was trying to finish my last like 60 continuing ed hours (every 5 years I have to have 150 continuing ed hours to renew my teaching certificate).  July, I'm finally free, but traveling a ton and trying to work on cleaning the house I neglected last month to finish the classes.  

Anyways, with all the teaching stuff on my mind the last few months, I decided it'd be fun to post some of the best quotes ever from my students over the last 5 years.  I was about to die while going back and reading these....SO FUNNY.  It's these kids and their silly, cute, sweet, hilarious attitudes that make me love my job so much!

 Kindergartener: I know what color an alien is!

Me: Oh, what color?

Kindergartener: It is a brrrr….greenish color.

Kindergartener: Ms. Dewoowen (can’t say my last name lol) he keeps looking at me.

Kindergartener: Mrs. Dewoowen, he is blowing on me!

3 year old: I have a sister named Hailey. She has a big head just like my dad, but it shrinked a little.

Mrs. Mach (one of my mentor teachers): What do you like about Jesus?

3 year old: He painted…

Another 3 year old: He played baseball…

3 year old: Ms. Leslie, you’re my best friend!…What does “best friend” mean???

Me: Can you remember what the house that the caterpillar makes is called?

3 year old (really excited b/c he just KNOWS he knows this answer): A RACOON!

1st grader: Are you a mommy?

Me: No, I’m not a mommy yet!

1st grader: Why aren’t you a mommy?

Me:…B/c I don’t have a husband…

Freshman: Do you have any kids at this school?

Me:…Um…I don’t know any kids at this school.

Freshman: No, do you HAVE any children that go to school here?

Me: No, I don’t have any kids yet!

(Telling me what they are going to be for Halloween)

3 year old girl: I’m a kitten!

Other 3 year old girl: I’m a red hot devil!

3rd grader: My mom calls me a bunny.

Me: ...Why?

3rd grader: Because I'm coocoo!

Elementary student: Sorry, I’m late! My mom slept late because she had diarrhea!

3 year old: You have nurses!

Teacher: It smells in here…it smells like candy…

3rd grader (special ed): It’s my ear.

3rd grader (in In-School Suspension): (at about 10:00am) I feel like my head is about to EXPLODE.

3rd grader (in In-School Suspension): (at about 10:30am) I feel like we have already been here for 6 days!

3 year old (at The Little Village): Guys who stick their tongue out can’t go to church.

Elementary student: (Written note to their P.E. teacher) I love PEE. It rocks!

Kindergartener(girl): Sometimes coyotes don’t always go to the right places. One time a coyote came on my street, climbed on my roof, and climbed into the chimney. We had a fire in the fireplace because it was a day when it was really cold outside. So, the coyote got burned up. So, then, we ate him.

Kindergartener(boy): One time a coyote got in my house. And I killed him!

Me: You killed him?!

Kindergartener(boy): Yeah. With my dad’s shotgun.

5 year old: You know Elmo?

Me: Elmo?

5 year old: Yeah, you were on there.

(Apparently, I look like someone who has been on Sesame Street?!?! Hahaha)

Elementary student:  I’m not dumb, but I’m no dictionary!

Me: (to a 3 year old lil girl) Is your sister bigger or smaller than you?

3 year old girl:  Smaller…this small…(shows me a gap between her index and thumb, like an ‘x’ in sign language)

Me:  What is her name?

3 year old girl:  Me no know his name now…

4 year old:  (Can’t pronounce the “n” sound, trying to say “I’m done”)  I’m dumb!

4 year old: (His teacher calls hand sanitizer “Brain Soap”)  I didn’t get no “brain soap”.  My brain isn’t gonna work!

4 year old: (to me)  You’re goin to be a football player!

3 year old: When I grow up, I’m going to be Strawberry Shortcake.

7th grader: (gig, fagot, and dire are his vocabulary words he has to use in a paper)  While I was riding around in my gig, I noticed a wonderful fagot and I couldn't resist the dire urge to go towards it.

5 year old: My mommy and daddy aren’t married yet.

4th grade girl: I’m a slow reader unless it has to do with blood and stuff.

4 year old-  Have you been to the Batman city?

Me:  The Batman city?

Other 4 year old:  He means Gotham City.

Me:  Oh..no. Nope, I’ve never been to Gotham City.

4 year old:  I’ve seen a real alligator, but it was a blue one.

4 year old (about Halloween):  I’m going to be a Spider-man cowboy!

5th grader (Writing a note on a white board in class to her little brother whom she affectionately calls “bubby” who she had hit with a car door the previous day):  I’m sorry booby!

3rd grader:  Do you like sharp objects?

Me:  No…why?

3rd grader:  Because my pencil is a sharp object now…I sharpened it too much.

2nd grader: Mrs. Wyers, can I tell you something? When you were standing over there (points to the teacher desk) you really sounded like a cowgirl.

Librarian: Do you know why I picked an owl for (to represent) poetry?

Young Student: Because half…the first half….of all words rhyme with owl…

2nd grader: I'm getting a new puppy. His name is Rainbow, but we are changing his name because my dad doesn't like it...and my mom doesn't like it because he's going to be a big, fat dog.

Hope you enjoyed...they definitely made my day better, haha!

~Leslie~

Forgiveness and Trust

Forgiveness and trust.  Two very important things in life, especially for a follower of Christ.  Those two are not one and the same though….as much as some people want to believe that.  Let’s take a look at the definitions of those words-

Forgive-  to stop feeling anger toward (someone who has done something wrong) : to stop blaming (someone) to cease to feel resentment against (an offender) 

Trust- assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something. 

I was in an emotionally and mentally abusive relationship for 2 years before my precious, amazing, trustworthy, 100% better husband came around.

I found a description one time of an emotionally abusive relationship
5 Signs of an Emotionally Abusive Relationship-
1.  “You walk on eggshells to avoid upsetting your partner.”
2.  “Your feelings and opinions are rarely validated.”
3.  “Your partner is mistrustful of you for no reason.”
4.  “You feel like you are unable to discuss problems in the relationship.”
5.  “You feel ‘stuck’ or confused most of the time.”

YES TO EVERY SINGLE ONE.
The guy from this past relationship not only hid, but flat out lied about an addiction he had during and way before our relationship.  He was the type of person that would say one thing, then turn around and do the COMPLETE opposite….telling me he had “made a mistake” and I needed to forgive, forget, and get over it right away….all the while leaving me to wonder what his real character was, which one was the real him. 
So, YES
I walked on eggshells wondering which version (the one that tells me what a respectable, mature person he is or the one who does the complete opposite of respectable and mature) I was going to get that week.
My feelings and opinions were often pushed aside when I worried about the difference between his words and actions….sometimes making me seem like his enemy.
He would get extremely jealous and freak out when I talked to his friends, thinking I would fall in love with one of them and leave him (usually he was present AND I was talking to them about HIM.  In NO WAY was I ever  flirting with another guy while we dated…he had NO reason to mistrust me), yet he thought it was completely ok to go clubbing and drinking with other women when I wasn’t around during some of our dating.
He would tell me to keep his “mistakes” and problems just between us, instead of seeking advice from people with more wisdom than us, and if I told anyone I would be "disrespecting" him. 
So, YES I felt “stuck” and confused.  I fell in love with who he told me he was and pretended to be.  In reality, I never loved who he actually was, the man he lied about and hid from me.
Not to mention all the evidence that points to me having a stalker in the year and a half following our break-up…but that’s a whole other story.

I have had someone come to me and say they feel bad that they didn’t help their boyfriend stay in touch with my ex.  I’ve had someone else say “Why does it matter if someone close to you wants to keep up with him…if you’ve TRULY forgiven him?”

And that is where my problem is.  First, I don’t know how keeping in touch with someone who causes that much damage to someone you care about could be beneficial to anyone.  Second, if that man ever came up to me and asked for my forgiveness, I could honestly say I forgive him (Just as Christ forgives me)….then in that same conversation, I would tell him that I fell in love with a fake version of him and would find no value in trusting him to be present in my life again.  So, yes you can forgive the wrong, but sometimes there’s no reason, benefit, value, or good in trusting someone in your life after that much damage.

This man settled down in my husband’s hometown.  So, any time we go back for a visit to see my in-laws, I have to wonder whether I will run into him or his wife and whether one of them with try to approach me…and I have run into them a few times, but thank goodness my husband is always by my side and they never try to speak to me.

“I can be changed by what happens to me. But I refuse to be reduced by it.”
 ~MAYA ANGELOU~

This is in the past.  It was a huge part of my life at one point, and like I said, I still have to deal with it when I go back to my husband’s hometown.  It definitely changed me as a person.  I’m not so naïve to believe that anyone who shows an interest in my life is trustworthy enough to be part of my life.  Let me be the first to say we all make mistakes.  Not a day goes by where I don't worry about, waste time on, or have pride in something I shouldn't.  The dangerous part is when people keep things as secret sins and hurt the innocent.  God always knows and cares.  I am caring, honest, trustworthy, and godly.  Neither that man nor anyone else can take that TRUTH about my character away.

For years I have wanted to explain this situation because people just don‘t seem to understand that forgiveness and trust are not the same thing.  They don’t always go hand in hand.

Do you understand?  If you are in a situation similar to this, please get help AND get out.
~Leslie~

Remembering An Unbelievable Life

I had been working on a different post, but that can wait for now.
I want to honor and remember Riley’s pawpaw who passed away last week.

I only knew Jack Riley for 4 and a half years, but even in that short amount of time, he made me want to be a better person.  I never once heard anything negative about him.

All I heard was...
How unselfish he was.
How smart he was…his kids and grandkids went to him when the needed help, and he always had an answer
What a cool grandpa he was….including stories of letting the boys do fireworks and a newspaper accidentally catching on fire while babysitting haha…of course, that last one was kept from Riley’s mom for years!
When the grandkids were little they would run to him instead of their moms when they got an “owie” because he was so gentle and comforting
What a hard worker he was
What a great boss he was…his employees had such admiration for him, they affectionately called him “Daddy”.
How he never complained, even when his health got so bad the last few years (and Grandma never complained about taking care of him while he was bedridden for months)
How nobody saw him get angry

You always hear about unconditional love, but my mom-in-law said he really lived it out.  When trying to give information to the funeral speaker, my dad-in-law said he just wished he could get the speaker to understand how UNBELIEVABLE Jack Riley was.

I got to see just a small part of Pawpaw’s life.  He really was unbelievable.  I’ve never seen someone so loved, respected, and just absolutely ADORED by everyone I have ever seen him with.  The main reason Jack Riley was so unbelievable was because he knew an unbelievable Savior.  If you don’t know what that’s like, ask me please.

I hope people can say even a fraction of the good things said about Pawpaw, about me when I go to heaven.  I hope I can at least learn to possess the kind of love he had for others.

How will I be remembered?  What will be said about me?  What will be said about you? 

In these bodies we will live, in these bodies we will die
Where you invest your love, you invest your life
~MUMFORD AND SONS~

We look forward to the day we see Pawpaw again…
~Leslie~

Friends

“Life is partly what we make it, and partly what is made by the friends we choose.”
~TENNESSSEE WILLIAMS~

I’ve gotten to the point in my life where I know who my friends are.  I don’t feel the need to find more.  I know who my closest friends are.  I know who my best friend is.  Life can be difficult sometimes when you don't know these.  I've been there.  I've asked myself, "Who REALLY is there for me?"  "Who can I trust?"  "Who proves I can trust them?"  Who was around when life sucked AND never left when life sucked?"  And "Who am I REALLY trying to be there for?"  "Who trusts me?"  "What do I do that makes them trust me?" "How can I try to brighten someone's sucky day?"  "How do I be a better friend?"
These are some thoughts on friendship I've had over the last few years-

You should never feel the need to prove yourself to someone you consider one of your closest friends…
I recently took a step back from a friendship I had felt this way toward for years now.  This person once told me they felt they put way more into our relationship than I did, while I felt this person seemed more interested in giving an opinion and advice, than making memories with me.   
Communication is key.  Two people can be in the same relationship, and yet see it in two different ways.  Unfortunately, communication just wasn’t happening for some reason, and I felt all the blame was put on me…even though it’s a two way street.  It is so much more relaxing and freeing to finally accept that I have other friends who understand me better, and I don’t need to put so much pressure on myself to prove my worth to that one friend when we hang out.

Boundaries are always important in any relationship, but just shutting someone out if they don't know what you need at the time is never an appropriate boundary.

Don’t expect too much from people…you never know what’s going on behind the scenes of their life.  Remember that everyone has issues in their life, many that you can’t even see…so always keep realistic expectations, encouragement, and gentle words up FRONT in your mind.

 “True friendship is not about being there when it’s convenient, but being there when it isn’t”
If someone is only there for you in the way THEY deem best for you ALL the time, not in a way you ask or need, that’s not a good friend.  That’s someone who is patronizing and arrogant.  Again, boundaries are KEY.

“Don't just ignore the effort of a person who tries to keep in touch. People get tired. It's not at all times that they hold on.”
I will NOT be the only one putting effort into keeping life close between us. 

I have all different types of friends...some younger, some still in college, some single, some married, some parents, some older, some going through hard times, some smooth sailing. No matter what stage of life you're in, you are valued.

This is the attitude I pray to have toward my friends-
Colossians 3:12 Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. 

I have been really encouraged by a few random texts and messages from friends thinking of me lately that have really blessed my life!  Thanks ya'll!

Love you friends,
~Leslie

Introverts are valuable too

**This post may seem a little self-centered, but I’m really trying to inform some of you.

So, this little picture thing has been posted on Pinterest and Facebook quite a few times in the last few months.

I am an introvert.  However, I’ve read introverts don’t like being considered shy.  Well, I’m a shy introvert.  Does that mean I hate people and being around them? No.  I just don’t like every kind of interaction that extroverts like, and being social for too long at one time can leave me exhausted.  Don’t take it personally.

#2, #4, #5, #9, and #12 are the most important to me.

#2- NEVER EMBARRASS THEM IN PUBLIC.
Just fyi, if you do this to me, I pretty much avoid hanging out with you and doing anything competitive with you.  This has happened to me quite a few times to the point that, I really don’t enjoy/avoid game nights I’m invited to.  When I was growing up, I had a friend several years older than me who, still to this day, is one of the most competitive people I’ve known.  She would play “spoons” with me and another person.  I was shy and also physically slow because of the mild cerebral palsy on the right side of my body.  I had a hard enough time just holding several cards in my right hand (the one affected by cerebral palsy) much less switching cards out and grabbing the spoon.  I would try to focus so hard on the cards.  Well, she and the other person would be as quiet as possible taking the spoons when someone had their 4 of a kind, and just keep handing me (unaware that someone had won) cards until I noticed, just to get a good laugh.  Yeah, she’s probably one of the main reasons I've never really enjoyed game nights...

#4-  GIVE THEM TIME TO THINK.  DON’T DEMAND INSTANT ANSWERS.
Introverts usually have a hundred scenarios going through our head.  Give us some time to analyze and PICK ONE of those hundreds.  K, thanks.

#5-  DON’T INTERRUPT THEM
Can’t tell you how many times I finally had the courage to speak up and share a story, opinion, etc. only to be interrupted in the middle of it.  And the interrupter usually never hears the rest of what I was saying….and most of the time doesn’t even notice.  And I bet they even thought I just didn‘t have anything to contribute to the conversation…

#9-  TEACH THEM NEW SKILLS PRIVATELY
Yes.  I don’t even like having a conversation with more than a few people at a time, when I KNOW what I‘m talking about.  Do you think I want a bunch of random people watching me do something I’ve NEVER DONE before?  It feels like having an interview or evaluation for a job. 

#12- RESPECT THEIR INTROVERSION. DON’T TRY TO REMAKE THEM INTO EXTROVERTS.
Recently, I was talking to a friend (also an introvert) and she said something about how society really likes to reward extroverts.  It’s true.  Please, realize that introverts are valuable too.  If I speak up and tell a story/opinion of mine, it usually took a lot of courage and I must think my words are somewhat meaningful to speak up AND trust you enough to let you hear them.  Maybe I don’t want to participate in a game night because I’ve been embarrassed in public one too many times lately.  Maybe I don’t feel like opening up to you because you’ve interrupted me or demanded instant answers when I have conversations with you.  Maybe I don’t want to go out tonight because I know you’ll try to make me act like an extrovert.  I’m not.  I like who I am.  Accept me or just let me be.

I’m tired of people seeing me as awkward, rude, stuck up, etc. because I don’t want to participate in EVERYTHING thrown at me.  Let me observe, think, listen, take it all in.  I’ve always been loyal to my friends.  I really do love people.  Introverts are loyal people.  We’re the ones with a shoulder to cry on when you just need someone PRESENT, the ones you can vent to without getting an unwanted opinion or advice because we’re pretty good at just sitting and listening…Don’t take my silence as an insult.  It’s not!  Introverts are valuable too.

These are just some thoughts from a shy introvert.  Psalm 139:14
~Leslie~

Lovey Dovey Stuff

Sorry, I didn't plan on being all lovey dovey in my first real post in 4 and a half years, but this week is Valentine’s Day and at the end of the month the hubby and I celebrate our 2nd anniversary.  SO-

In almost 2 years of marriage, I feel like one of the best things for us is to recognize and remember each other’s love language.

The 5  Love Languages-

• Acts of Service
• Physical Touch
• Quality Time
• Receiving Gifts
• Words of Affirmation

The hubs and I both have 2 main love languages, one in common and one different.  For both of us, quality time is a big deal.  We want to be around each other, having good conversations, and doing activities we both enjoy.  Unfortunately, for over a year now, hubby’s job has taken him away from Texas 2 weeks a month.  So, the quality time we do get is an even bigger deal.  Some of the quality time we both love are just simple pleasures like tv marathons of our favorite shows, walks around the neighborhood with our puppy, and road trips (we love traveling!)  But after a while of just trying to squeeze time in when he WAS in town…it ended up ONLY being those 3 things we were doing almost all the time.  Don’t get me wrong…I loved the time we could get together enjoying those, but I just started feeling like we got in a dull routine of just doing the most ordinary and easiest thing at the time.  I remembered a few of my most favorite times we had had as a dating and barely married couple-

• A random afternoon trip to the lake in his boat taking pictures of the  bright green lily pads, flying white egrets, and tall trees.

• An evening at my apartment before he graduated from college, I was showing him the dresses I could pick from to where to his graduation dinner.  After I put on one “little black dress”, he loved it and we put some music on and danced the night away.

• At this one park in my husband‘s hometown (my favorite park I’ve ever been to) in the springtime, it’s kinda like walking in a fairytale or something.  These yellow flowers (really weeds, but I pretend ;-) ) grow almost as tall as I am.  Funny little road signs have been set up along this walking and biking path…tiny versions of car road signs, like a STOP sign and YEILD sign.  It’s super weird and I loved walking through it and taking pictures.

I was missing these kind of quality time ADVENTURES!

• So, we have made it a priority to plan a few of these lately-In the fall which is my absolute favorite time of year, we went back to that weird, fairy-tale like park because, well, it’s my favorite time of year!  We took our puppy for a walk there.  The trees and ground were covered with crunchy yellow leaves.  It was the most gorgeous day of the year, in my opinion.  Once again, we took pictures…I take tons.  Are you following me on instagram already?

• And over Christmas break, we took a random, silly date to a Good Will.  We each set out to find the most ridiculous items in the store, especially clothing items to make the other try on.  More pictures. :-)

I saw this quote recently-  “We assume others show love the same way we do - and if they don’t, we worry it’s not there.”  
It was a pin on Pinterest.  So, I have no idea who the author is lol.

HOW someone knows they ARE loved is pretty important, right?  So, I encourage you to make it a priority to make a big deal of your significant other’s, best friend’s, or family member’s love language however you can.

John 13:34
~Leslie~

Haven't blogged in years...

So, I haven’t blogged in YEARS, but I’ve really been missing it lately.  So, I’m gonna give it another try…

First, a few personal reasons I want to blog again-
1.  To share life and thoughts
2.  To practice more creativity
3.  To voice what The Lord is teaching me more often than I have the last few years
4.  To vent, at times/ have a place to release stress

I’m hoping these personal reasons will keep me focused when I write….instead of just blabbing on with randomness.

So, “to share life”

I am loving my mid-20s for the most part (minus the whole no energy and lots of headaches from some serious health problems a few years ago)

I adore the man who picked me to be his wife and helper.

I think I’m becoming even more introverted than I used to be

I have been interested in working on my artsy and photographer side more.  Instagram is my favorite right now….cool pictures+no drama= :-)

Isaiah 41:10 is still my life verse.

Hopefully, more to come soon
~Leslie~