Week 17: Blind-Folded

On Friday, the baseball boys played Klein Oak at 3:30pm and 7:30pm. Savannah and I were at the first game, keeping book and keeping each other company in the dugout! Here is a picture of a few of the guys (throwing up the immortal sign, of course). As for the second game, I had to leave early because I was committed to attend the Life Skills dance. The Life Skills dance is a dance planned by the AHS PALS and FLO/SAIL students for the special education program at our school. It was Valentine's Day themed... so there were pink streamers, red hearts, and plenty of tasty sweets everywhere! We played pin the tail on the donkey, bent our bodies underneath the limbo bar, colored plenty of unique drawings, and danced the night away! This year there was a much lower attendance of Life Skills students than in previous years, which made us all very sad. However, the students that did show up had an absolute BLAST! After the dance, the girl PALs blind folded the boy PALs and treated them to a surprise Valentine's Day dinner. Originally, we planned on taking them to 5 Guys (since there are 5 guys in the class). However... within five minutes of leaving the school, we decided to be spontaneous and take the guys to CiCi's Pizza. All of the girls snatched up a guy, blindfolded him, and carpooled to dinner. Each PYPM group also gave their boy PAL a little present! Once we arrived to the CiCi's parking lot, we all said, "You'll never Ci what we Ci. Even though there are 5 Guys in PALs, we're not at 5 Guys..."and then we unmasked the location! The night was super fun and a total success!

Week 17: Coach Sebesta!

The writing TAKS test is less than three weeks away and I am starting to get nervous for my little fourth graders. On March 1st, they will all sit down in their uncomfortable wooden desks to take this highly anticipated test. It consists of editing four stories for grammar, spelling, and punctuation AND writing a composition from start to finish. The prompt is unpredictable and will not be given to them until the day of. Mrs. Sebesta has been working her tail off to get her kids prepared for this big day! As her student teacher, I can only do so much!  Every time I am there, I try my best to help her class become better writers! Mrs. Sebesta is passionate about teaching and baseball; she usually combines the two on a regular basis! We have our 'World Series Writing' method, our 'Spelling Sluggers' wall, the 'Reading Dugout', a list of 'Grand Slam Vocabulary', and a 'H.O.M.E.R.U.N.' acronym that is a useful writing tool! She is SO creative! Since writing is the hot topic for fourth grade students across Texas, they have written several compositions over various topics this year. All of their essays are placed in their portfolios and this afternoon we had a Portfolio Party! Their parents were welcome to stop by, see their portfolio, and read all of their awesome stories! The kid's have yet to strike out as we head into the final innings before the writing TAKS day... we're just hoping those judges don't throw them any curve balls!

Today I made this sign for Collin Cobb, Taylor's younger brother. This is the first sign I have ever made for him and I think it was about time this sweet little baseball boy got one!

Week 17: Baseball Brownies!

Tonight the 2011 baseball season kicked off with scrimmages at Cinco Ranch! With all of the excitement stirring about, I decided to make 'Baseball Brownies' for the Varsity players to eat after the game. I headed straight to the grocery store after school and bought all of my little ingredients. I spent most of my afternoon baking, creating, and decorating. I absolutely LOVED the end result and I wish y'all could have seen me while I was making them. I was home alone, prancing throughout the house like a little kid on Christmas morning!  It was freezing cold at the scrimmages tonight... and freezing isn't an exaggeration. We were all shivering while bundled up under sleeping bags in the dugout! The boys kept begging and begging for some warm brownies, but I made them wait until the very end. I hope they don't expect sweets after EVERY game from now on! If Savannah and I could withstand the chilly winds tonight, then we can make it as the managers for this crazy season! :)

Week 17: Pride

Mondays are always FCA nights! Tonight went exceptionally well. We played 'Over and Under' as our group game. Everyone was numbered off into two teams and the goal was to be the first team to touch their ball to the bulldog that was painted on the wall. Brelynn and Taylor would toss the balls into the air,  across the gym, and all over the place... while the teams had to chase their ball and begin the process of going under your legs and over your head. This game was very intense and SO much fun!! Afterwards, Sam, Brelynn and Ira spoke about pain and suffering. It was the first public speaking engagement for all three of them and they did awesome! I realized that it all comes down to pride. We are so prideful; at least I know I am. I am strongly independent and an undeniable control freak. Usually, I have trust issues with relationships in my life, and I can see those issues reflect in my relationship with Christ. I am too quick with the 'I can do it myself' attitude and too hesitant to admit that I need help. I took quite a bit from their message tonight and I am so proud of all of them! After FCA, Ira texted me... thanking me for helping her prepare her message and reminding me that she's seen 'the best' speak at FCA since sophomore year (implying all of those Monday nights that I've stood up there and talked). She will never understand how much a compliment like that means to me. Ira is a sweet and witty girl; I am so thankful that she is a part of my life! <3 

Week 17: Super Bowl Sunday



Week 17 started with Super Bowl Sunday!

I worked at 9ers all afternoon and spent the evening watching the big game at a family friend's party! They had plenty of tasty food and desserts galore. My Mom made the most incredible brownies and I even delivered some to Taylor. I felt bad that he was stuck at work during the Super Bowl! I enjoyed singing and dancing along to the Black Eyed Peas and Usher's performance during the half-time show! There are plenty of haters out there, but it was the best show I've seen since Janet Jackson and Justin Timberlake! The Greenbay Packers beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-25. The actual game was predictable and boring; however, I enjoyed the food and the company! After the game, I headed home and talked to my parents for a very long time about yesterday. The story was long and very detailed, but I love how open I am with them. My Mom loves feeling included during 'story time' and I love taking advice from my Dad.

Bottom line...

Working at 9ers Grill... Average & Easy.

Super Bowl Sunday... Relaxing & Fun!
My Relationship with my Parents... Amazing.

Week 18: Unpredictable.

Saturday, the weather was in the mid-50's! The ice melted and everything shifted back to normal, even though nothing happened according to plan. All day long, my Mom and I were prom dress shopping. We were very unsuccessful and it was discouraging. I am learning that I am extremely too picky and I was way too in love with my dress from last year. I will eventually find the perfect dress for my Senior Prom, but my head is too wrapped up in the style and color of my old dress. After a failed shopping attempt, the rest of the day did not happen according to plan either. My original Saturday night plans were cancelled and other things kept falling through as well. In the midst of my disappointment, I learned that my presence was much needed elsewhere for this evening. God works in mysterious ways and I am certain tonight's misfortunate events were a part of His plan. Unpredictable is the perfect word to describe this week, and I will admit I shed a few 'unexplainable' tears. Having faith in Him was the light that guided me through the darkness. Take a deep breath... Week 18 is finally over!

Week 18: Ice Ice Baby!

This weekend, my original plan was to attend the PALs Ropes Course in New Braunfels, TX. We were scheduled to leave at 7 am on Friday morning. However, due to the current weather conditions and the fact that school was cancelled on Friday... our trip was postponed. Friday was 'Snow Day' throughout Sugar Land- even though there was NO snow in sight. We had extremely icy roads and the temperature remained in the twenties. My Mom and I decided to be productive on our day off, so we cleaned, reorganized, and rearranged my bedroom. We cleared out my entire closest and got rid of items that I never use. Some of my clothes still had tags on them... embarassing. We made a stack to send off to the Goodwill store in hopes that someone may find good use of them. After our cleaning rampage, I spent some time with Shannon and ten other 9 year old girls. She had a 'Snow Day' party at the house and they were going nuts! I talked to them all about their excitement for middle school next year, and they were most excited about meeting new boys... shocker! The remainder of the day was spent relaxing at home, catching up on my favorite shows, and cooking dinner for the family. I made a Tuscan-Style Tomato Basil Soup... thanks to the genius sample booth at the local H.E.B. It looked extremely unappetizing, but it turned out to be quite the tasty little dish! I forgot to buy basil at the store (sort of a key ingredient) and I accidently used vegetable oil instead of olive oil (whoopsie)! Cooking is definitely a learning process. After dinner, I spent my 'Snow Night' with some of my closest friends. We played Just Dance 2, drank hot chocolate, and hung out! I spent the night at Brittany's house with Katy and Anam. We ate freshly baked chocolate chip cookies dunked in milk and had pillow talk for many hours. I LOVE Snow Days!