Mountain Weekend

This past weekend we went to the mountains with Josh and Lindsay. It was a perfect weekend to go away since school has started back and my graduate school started back too. Brent and I left late Friday night and ended up in a lot of rain and fog. The GPS also got us lost! I was not a happy camper, but we finally arrived at the condo.

The condo was in the Smokey Moutanins and was beautiful! We spent Friday night relaxing and spending time together. On Saturday, we got up and went on some adventures. We ended up on the Cherokee Reservation and looked around at some shops. At least, when I teach about the Cherokee, I can tell the students I've visited there. Then, we realized we were close to Harrah's Casino so we decided to go there. We ate at Paula Dean's Kitchen. It was so yummy! We went down to the casino for a little bit, but didn't win in any money. :) We spent the rest of the day visiting the small cities around the town.

We ended up the weekend visiting Grove Park Inn in Asheville. We ate lunch and spent the afternoon looking at the beautiful views. It was a wonderful, relaxing afternoon with Josh and Lindsay!

Past few weeks

Well, we've had a few long weeks in January. We started out the month by resting and getting back in the routine of going to school. School is back to normal and we are getting ready for our Open House.

Last weekend, my mom had to have emergency surgery on her kidney. She fell over Christmas, fractured her kidney, and had some internal bleeding. Thank the Lord, they found it in time and she is okay. She had surgery and still has to have another surgery. She is doing lots better and we just pray for a quick recovery!

My mom has to have someone with her, so I took a few days off this week to spend with her. I enjoyed spending time with her at the house and relaxing. We watched a lot of TV. I think I've seen all the talk shows on during the day. Even though I had to be out of school for a bad reason, it was nice being at home with mom!

Beginning of 2012

I always get a little sad when January 1st rolls around because the Christmas season is all over. I was sad to put away all the Christmas decorations and put our gifts away. I waited until the end of the week to put everything away this year. Now that everything is put up, I like seeing the house all neat and clean. Now let's see how long that will last.

We spent the week after Christmas relaxing and spending lots of time in the house. I read, watched TV and spent time with our families. We went to Grove Park Inn on Wednesday to look at the Gingerbread Houses. We had such a great time. It is definitely one of my favorite places to go. We're going to try to stay there some time this year. It's so beautiful. I loved the Gingerbread houses this year. It makes me want to try to build one with my class next year. The rest of the week was spent putting up Christmas decorations and cleaning the house.

We spent NYE with some of our friends in Easley. We had a great time at dinner and hanging out until the New Year. We also spent New Year's Day eating black eyed peas and collard greens at my grandparents.

Here are some of the things I'm most looking forward to this year:

• Graduating with my Master's degree.
• The arrival of Amy's baby boy James.
• The arrival of 2 babies in Brent's extended family.
• Celebrating being with Brent for 10 years.
• Going on several trips with our friends and families. (Hopefully Disneyworld!)

I'm looking forward to a wonderful year in 2012.

2011

It's hard to believe 2011 has come to an end. We had a wonderful year and I am so thankful for the many blessings we had throughout the year. Here are some highlights from 2011:

• We started out the year with a lot of snow for us! We had an entire week off of school! It was a great break!
• I started my Masters' program at Anderson University. I began in January with one class and continued in July. I'm getting my Masters in Education and will be done this July.
• My friend Jenni got married this past April.
• We threw a great baby shower for Mary Elizabeth and baby Jackson.
• I turned 25 years old and Brent turned 26!
• I finished my 3rd year of teaching.
• Baby Jackson was born in June!
• Brent and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary.
• Brent and I went to Charleston for vacation this summer.
• The Clemson Tigers went 10-3 and are going to the Orange Bowl this Wednesday.
• I started my 4th year of teaching 3rd grade.
• I went to the beach for Fall Break with Brent's family and the Iveys.
• Riley graduated from Clemson!

Those are just some of the highlights from my year. It's been a great year and I'm looking forward to a great 2012.