Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas friends! I hope that you all have a wonderful day filled with family and friends. To those of you living in Vicksburg, pick up today's paper and read the Letters to Santa. Precious. A girl in my class got her letter scanned into the front page (in color)- big accomplishment! I have to retype a letter from one child in my class. Hilarious: Dear Santa, My sisteres hav ben vere bat. I think you shud put coll in ther stocking. Will you fill ther roomes with coll. Will you give me what thay get. Ples give me a gun.
Um....ok. I seriously laughed out loud the first time I read it. I have got to call his mother and see what she thought. I hope you can read and understand the creative spelling. This gives you a little insight into what I do every day. Actually, I don't even notice the spelling much anymore as long as the handwriting is legible. Please remember- these are 2nd graders. Another girl in my class told Santa she wanted "skinny jeans kids size: Large". Nice use of punctuation there.
We have a new finish date for the construction- January 14th!!! This is 2 weeks earlier than expected. This is wonderful because.....baby Louis will be here January 27th at 7am! We are so excited to know the date. That is, unless he decides to come earlier. He needs to hang in there- the 27th is perfect, and I've got some schoolwork to finish before then.
PS- Never got my Christmas cards, which isn't a big deal. Just wanted you to know you haven't been cut from the list. Be looking for baby announcements in February!

I promise I will post pictures soon. My camera is dead.

Slacker

I have really been trying to keep updated with the addition. But, every time I come home it's too dark to take pictures. Here are the most recent ones. They just have the framing. But- we now have sheetrock, windows, doors, a tub, a shower, and a garage! (Oh and a driveway). I will take some more pictures soon. In 4 1/2 days I will be on Christmas break for 2 weeks. So.Excited. I need a break.

Master Bedroom

Bath and closet

I also have to brag on my sweet kids at school. We adopted an angel from the Salvation Army. They brought in money to buy him Christmas gifts. I figured we would get maybe $10 and I'd have to put up the rest. They brought in almost $70! I was so happy! The kids really "got" the point as well. Whenever they brought in money for the angel you should have seen their faces- they were so excited. So, I made sure that all the gifts they purchased were brought to school first so they could see. They were really excited about buying the kid a bike. I was so nice to see kids really get into giving something to another child. Ok enough typing. Here are the pictures...

Our sad attempt at a Christmas card photo with the dogs. Notice Baxter is nowhere to be found. Kevin looks terrified.

Lucky Little Louis

Today my friends threw me the most perfect baby shower! Every little detail was wonderful, and I felt so lucky to have such great friends. Rob and I are also really lucky to have such wonderful friends because Louis' nursery is FULL of clothes and all kinds of sweet baby things. Right after I got home I began cutting off tags and washing clothes. Dreft smells so good! While I was sorting, Rob was putting things together. He did a great job and didn't say one inappropriate word the whole time (not out loud anyway). My dad put the stroller together the other day, and I wonder if he faired as well :)
Here are some pictures from the shower:

Table with Louis' rocking horse (elephant)

The Baby sign Ellen practically stole

More sweets. My friends know me too well!

Monogram in blocks

Guest Book





Hostesses: Ellen (sister-in-law), Jennifer, Caitlin (sister), me, Laura Beth, Katrina, and Casey (sister-in-law)



My sister, mom, and me!



Both sides of the fam

Casey, Mrs. Jackie, Ellen, and me

Alana and Kaycie. Thank you both (and Alana's mom Lo) for driving all the way here! Love you!





Louis' loot

MS Reading Association Conference

This past week I got 3 days off of work to attend the MS Reading Conference. It was at the Beau Rivage. I really enjoyed my last trip before the baby comes! Only 9 weeks now. Scary.
I listened to some really good speakers and I think that I left with some awesome ideas to use in my classroom. The speaker that I really enjoyed the most was Brett Dillingham. He is from Alaska, and specializes in storytelling. Let me tell you- he is super interesting! I learned a lot about how kids tell stories, and how to help them tell and retell stories. Sorry for all you non-teachers out there. This is probably a boring post. But seriously, if you are a teacher- go to BrettDillingham.com to check him out. Very inspiring. He also did a talk about the new documentary "Waiting on Superman". I knew this documentary was about schools, but I really haven't heard much about it. Apparently it bashes teaches and says that the only solution to American education is Charter Schools. I will not go in to this on my blog, but this is NOT the solution. If you really know a teacher, then you know how hard they work. I am not patting myself on the back by any means- I am just letting all of you know, I have not come across a teacher that doesn't work super hard every single day and I sure haven't met one that doesn't go home at night worrying about her students. If you have a chance, spend some time in a public school. Read to kids, help them review spelling words, just watch a classroom full of 7 years olds. It's amazing. That is really what our schools need right now. The support of our community. Anyway, off my soapbox. I'm going to get some new house pictures up soon. Promise.
Oh and by the way- the reason you haven't received a Christmas card from us yet is because we cannot get a good one. The dogs will not cooperate. Maybe our next photo session will work out.

Making Good Progress

The house is really coming along great! The framing for the walls has gone up, so now I can visualize what we're getting. I love it! Now we have to decide where electrical sockets go. This is a harder task than you realize. Kind of frustrating.

The footings



Where the framing is now. I haven't gotten a picture yet, but I will today!



Also, we had our 4D sonogram yesterday. We almost  missed the date for this, so the pictures didn't turn out too great. He has gotten a little big. In the pictures you can really only see his lips and nose. But- the lady doing the sonogram said he is chubby. Ha- go figure!

This is pretty much the best one. You can see his chin, mouth (open), and nose.

We also picked a name- William Louis Amborn. We are really excited about it and we think it's perfect. So now, we can get some things monogrammed!

Last weekend, Rob, my parents, and I went to the LSU/Ole Miss game. We had a lot of fun. Even though I have been to about 100 games there before this was my first time to sit in the upper deck. It really wasn't as bad as I thought. It was however, about a million degrees. And I had on Ugg Boots. But the Tigers won and we all had a good time (except maybe Rob hating the outcome).

7 of 10

We are now officially 7 months pregnant. February is right around the corner. The addition is coming along great and the nursery is coming together. Here are some pictures! (Congratulations also to our friends Mollie and Aaron George on the birth of their beautiful twins, Avery and Garrett. A boy and a girl. We can't wait to meet them!)

Concrete slab on the garage.

Nursery rug. Not sure how we feel about this. It may be sent to another room and we might have to order another one.

Changing table. I am so glad I have a handy husband that can put these things together :)

So many things

There is so much going on right now! We just started the 3rd Trimester (a little scary, but exciting at the same time). I can't believe he will be here in less than 3 months! I am for sure looking pregnant by now. We went to the doctor on Thursday and thank goodness I don't have pregnancy diabetes. (I was a little worried because I eat so many sweets!) We are really working on the nursery as fast as we can. We ordered the changing table on Thursday and Rob cleaned out the nursery last weekend. It looks great. I have picked a paint color, and I can't wait to paint. We are trying to decide between two different rugs for the room. Hard decision. We are also really close to picking a name. I will be sure to let you know once it's definate!



The baby bedding (a gift from my parents) in the clean nursery (thank you Rob).

 Yesterday was my Dad's birthday! My parents and sister came over for dinner. My mom cooked and we had great cupcakes from Gigi's. If you haven't had a chance to go, I highly recommend it.



The wonderful cupcakes.



Also, the addition is coming along great. They are laying the frame for the foundation and they have knocked off the bricks on the back of the house.



Bricks off the walls.



Framing for the garage!

4 months, 2 additions

As you know, we are expecting one addition in February. That's about 4 months from now. We are also working on another addition to be finished at the end of January- an addition to our house. They started the dirt work this week. So far they have torn down the carport and removed all the grass from the backyard. Here are some pictures of the work so far. At least I will have something to blog about over the next few months...

After the grass and trees were gone.

Our old deck, fence, and carport

Where the carport used to be

I can't wait to see the finished product!

Same Kind of Different as Me

Last night I finished one of the best books I have read in a while, "Same Kind of Different as Me". I started reading it because I thought it was the male version of "The Help", which I also loved. It was very different. The book tells the true story of a sharecroper in Louisiana in the mid 20th century. It also tells the story of a man who started out poor and became a very wealthy art dealer.
Not only does it tell about their lives, it tells how they came into each others lives and the changes they made once they became friends.
This book really makes you think about yourself as a person. How you view others, how others view you, and what things you do to make a difference.
And, it has a very sad twist. Not quite expected when you begin reading. I cried for a lot of the book. (Yes, I am emotional now, but I think anyone would find it sad).
The book also makes you think about your relationship with God. You find yourself asking the same questions as one of the authors. But, it isn't one of those things that makes you feel bad about yourself. It just makes you want to do more than you are already doing.
Please read this. I am very glad I did. It will really make you appreciate the things you have in your life, not just material possessions, but the people and experiences as well.
My favorite quote from the book is "I woke up". A simple blessing that most of us take for granted. If you can think of nothing else to be thankful for in a day, this can be your thanks to God. That you woke up and that you have the opportunity to live another day and make a difference to someone.

Deja Vu

Seriously Les Miles? I don't think I can take up for you any longer. Did you learn nothing from the Ole Miss game last year? We are STILL hearing about it. How are you not? For those of you that missed the "plays" here they are:

#1 LSU v. Ole Miss 2009
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEgQMU4kC-4

#2 LSU v. Tennessee 2010
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6sbwLrUu9o

Yay for Fall!

In celebration of Fall my class painted pumpkins today. They turned out really cute and I heard some of my kids saying this was the best day ever! I guess so- they didn't have to clean the mess!! In all seriousness, I love to do things like this with my class because they work so hard all day every day. They really need some fun time. PS- this is EXHAUSTING to do as a teacher. Not quite sure what our Christmas craft will be. Something low key. Enjoy the pictures!

CNN Hero

For those of you who do not already know, a really wonderful lady from Vicksburg is a Top 10 CNN Hero. Her name is Linda Fondren. You can vote for her to win this year's CNN Hero on cnnheroes.com. You can read her story and vote as many times as you like each day.
What makes her so wonderful? She is committed to making the residents of our town healthier and more in shape! You may recognize her name from Shape Up Sisters- the gym that she owns. She is also super involved in the community in anything related to staying healthy or in shape.
I have had the wonderful opportunity to work with her the past two weeks at our school. She has chosen the faculty and staff of Bowmar Elementary as a Shape Up Teachers pilot program. She comes to our school each Wednesday afternoon and does a workout with the teachers. She also gave each of us a FREE 10 week membership to Shape Up Sisters, as well as FREE access to a personal trainer for 1 hour a week. This is really awesome of her, and we really appreciate her effort and commitment.
You may be wondering what I'm doing in this program since I am pregnant- I am certainly not trying to lose weight just yet. But I felt that it was a great opportunity to work with someone who can tell me what I can do pregnant to stay healthy for myself and the baby.
At the meeting today, a nutritionist spoke about healthy eating. These talks always make me feel super unhealthy and like I may drop dead at the age of 25 from poor nutrition. The next step in this health quest is to begin keeping a food diary. We don't have to start until next week, but I wrote down all the things I ate today. It really isn't too bad- unless you count the 2 1/2 breakfasts I ate and the ENTIRE 3 Musketeers bar right before our "healthy" meeting. Oops... But I am really trying to eat more fruits and vegetables. You should all do the same!

So please, if you get a chance, vote for LINDA FONDREN at cnnheroes.com! She really deserves it!

Baby Bed: check

Disclaimer: Leslie Sadler, do not read this post. It might make you mad.

This past week, Rob and I picked up the baby bed we wanted in Jackson. The plan was to wait until the room is painted to put it together. Apparently, someone was too anxious for that to be possible. Instead, it was put together on Saturday. Don't worry, when we paint the room "we can just put some plastic over it to protect it"...right. Anyway- here is the bed. Please disregard the other stuff in the room. It will  most certainly be gone LONG, LONG before February (right Rob?).

Told you it wouldn't look as girly when I got it together. Just wait until you see it with bedding!

Anyway- the peanut butter and candy craving is back. What liar said you only have those cravings when pregnant with girls? Wrong. Thank you to my sister for bringing me candy last night. I'm sure I'll just blame you when I gain too much weight :)

9/11

I hate to start of the weekend with a post of something sad. But really, I have to say something about 9/11. It's hard to believe that it has been 9 years. I know most of you know exactly where you were when you heard the news. I was in 10th grade Theology and we were watching TV (Big surprise at St. Al). Our teacher had a moment of sanity and told us we had to watch the news and not MTV. The second we turned to CNN the second plane hit the twin towers. At this point, none of us knew the back story. The more we watched, the more surreal it all became. The rest of the day the whole school watched as the sad story unfolded.
I was thinking about 9/11 yesterday, and I realized that none of the children in my class were even alive when it happened. That doesn't seem possible that they never lived in the same America we did. Because like it or not, everything changed that day. A lot of the changes were bad. But I think that it made a lot of us realize how wonderful it is to be an American. How privileged we are to have been born here. Instead of talking to my students about 9/11 and all the terrible things we saw (and were lucky enough not to see) that day, I decided to talk to them about what it means to be an American. Sure they all know we are free, they've heard it a million times. But what does being free really mean? It means that everyone has the right to an education. Everyone can pray however, and whenever they want. You can become absolutely anything you want as long as you put your heart in it. No one can silence your opinion or your voice. If my students take nothing else away from the 2nd grade, I want it to be the knowledge of what it means to be an American. I want them to have an appreciation of our country and what we stand for.
So today, when you think about 9/11 and you pray for the families and the victims of that tragic day, please pray for the children in our country. Pray that they will grow up knowing the America we all knew before 9/11. Pray that they will be proud of their country and they will appreciate the freedoms given to them at birth. But mostly, pray that as they grow older, they will instill what it means to be an American to the next generation.

**Drive past the Military park if you get a chance. Breathtaking.

Boy Oh Boy!

Yesterday was filled with wonderful news! First, Rob and I went to the Dr and found out we are having a boy! Rob's reaction to the news was priceless- he literally jumped out of his chair and shouted "All Right!". Ha- I think he scared the sonogram lady a little bit.
I had to buy a baby shower gift since we were in Jackson, so Rob and I went to Babies R Us and bought all kinds of blue clothes (as well as some Saints onesies for next season). Then when ran by and picked out the baby bed. I have been looking for months, and I am so excited that we found the bed I really wanted :) I don't think it's quite what Rob had in mind, but he was really sweet and agreed to get the one I had my heart set on.

(This picture makes the bed look really girly, but I promise with the right bedding it will be perfect for a boy. Also, I don't think we are going to use the canopy poles. So try to imagine it without those.)

Then, at 7, our family came over so we could announce the news. It was so nice to have our parents and siblings there. We were also glad that Rob's (and my) Aunt Judy and Uncle Richard were in town so they could be here for the announcement too. I had cakes made that were either pink or blue inside. When we cut into the blue cake everyone went crazy. I wish I had them on film! Perfect way to make the announcement :)

Another great thing happened yesterday- my Pepaw got news from his Dr that he doesn't have bone cancer. We have been really worried for over a month now, but we are SO excited to get this great news!!! Prayer really does work.

Thank you Lord for so much wonderful news!

Just Like Christmas Morning

Merry Christmas football fans! The day is finally here. Football season 2010 (yes, I know it really began Thursday. But I don't count it until LSU game day.) Here are a couple of videos to get you even more excited than you already are. I have also included a little something for my MSU friends:

Turn up your volume. 1:27 Seconds is where it all begins.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiZoYQSqu-A

Only because I love my MS State friends:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wniNWNT3Zo

Finally, Some New Clothes!

Yesterday, my mom and I went to the new maternity store here in town (Good Mommy Maternity). It's right by Heavenly Ham in case you haven't seen it yet. I was a little skeptical to go in because you know the normal clothing situation in Vicksburg is not good. I was very pleasantly surprised! They had just put out some fall clothes, and they were really cute! Granted, I am no fashion plate, but I would tell all of my pregnant friends to go there. The man that owns the store is super nice too. He said that he has new stuff coming in all the time, and that the next batch of fall/winter stuff is priced really well. I didn't think the prices were bad at all yesterday, but of course I think that because my mom paid for it! So, if you are pregnant and need a cute dress/skirt/shirt, try it out before driving to Jackson.
P.S.- I found this really cute "strapless dress" that I wanted to buy to wear to a wedding. My mom kindly told me that it was a skirt and the "top" was actually supposed to go over the baby belly. Oops. I have much to learn!

And so we wait

Today, Rob and I went to another Dr. appointment. We were really, really hoping that we could find out the gender of the baby. No luck. We go back on September 20 and we can find out then! I am extremely impatient about everything, and this is no different. I was in the mindset that I didn't want to find out, but after Rob convinced me otherwise, I need to know now. Oh well- I guess at 20 weeks we still have plenty of time to plan a nursery. If we can't do that in 20 weeks, we have a problem.
On another note, our house is officially on the market! Don't ask us where we will move if we sell it. We are just putting it out there to see what happens. We really love our house and our area, but we would really like an additional bedroom. But, if we can't sell right now, we can for sure make it work. (At least until baby #2 comes along, which will be a long while!)
School is still going great! I love my sweet little class. They are so precious and they are so good! No behavior problems at all. They are super hard workers and they are very smart. I think this is going to be such a great year.

We Will Miss You Gran!

As some of you know, Rob's grandmother, Mrs. Amborn (Gran), passed away on Sunday. She was such a sweet and loving person. From the first time I met her when Rob and I started dating, she made me feel like a part of her family. I am so glad that I got the chance to know her over the past few years. She will be truly missed by everyone that knew her. Please keep Rob's family in yours prayers this week, and especially Saturday during her funeral.

Welcome Back!

School starts TODAY and I can't believe how fast the summer went. Here are the pictures of my 2nd grade classroom. Even though it's complete, it still is a little bare until I have student work to post!