continued thanksgiving

on my way to listing out something that I am thankful for each day this year.


3. funny sayings my students say. Today was the first day back and I overheard one student say, "Dang I can't believe Mrs. Osborn still has that baby in her belly!"
4. my house- my dad's house burnt down today. Thankfully he is okay, but he and his wife lost everything.
5. getting to hear my son's heartbeat, it never gets old
6. my drive to and from school. It is a nice time to just sit and listen to music as I prepare for what is ahead or unwind from my day.
7. lazy evenings resting on couch with a hot pad on my achy back
8. Today Brett and I walked through the remains of my father's house and it once again showed me how blessed I am to have a home full of nice things, many of which I probably don't need.
9. having an afternoon to read while Brett naps.
10. SNOW DAYS!!!!!!
11. enjoying a second snow day and enjoying this time of rest and cuddling with my sweet dog Rocco
12. realizing how lucky I am to have three snows in a row to myself because in a little over a month, my days will no longer be mine for rest and relaxation.
13. my Martin City school family, they threw me a wonderful baby shower today after school.
14. feeling my son kick and move around in the womb, a constant remainder of how blessed I am to have a healthy pregnancy and a growing baby.
15. enjoying the fellowship of the candle light brunch at church this morning as we kicked off the woman's ministry at church.
16. The Sabbath, a day of rest.
17. being reminded that the Lord gives and takes away, but blessed be HIS name!
18. in-service day at school today. It was nice to actually have time to go out for lunch and visit with my co-teachers outside of the school setting.

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Gratitude

With the new year hear I have been thinking about resolutions. I rarely make them any more because I hardly keep them. But the past few weeks I have been thinking about all the blessings in my life that I am thankful for, and all of the wonderful, undeserving gifts that the Lord has given me. I recently read a blog post at Passionate Homemaking about gratitude and making a list off all the things you are thankful for.

You can read it here:

http://http://www.passionatehomemaking.com/2010/11/one-thousand-gifts-learning-to-see-and-name-every-one.html

I have decided to do the same thing this year. Although with a baby coming next month, I am going to modify my gratitude list to listing one thing (possibly more) that I am thankful for everyday this year.

1). I'm thankful for the grace, mercy and love from my sovereign Father.

2). Bible reading and prayer every night with Brett before we go to sleep.

I want to spend this year meditating on the things in life that are most important and life-giving, as well as the fun, everyday blessings that make my heart happy.

Happy New Year, here's to making 2011 a year filled with thanksgiving and reflection.

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O Holy Night...

I love being pregnant at Christmas time! This year, especially since I am pregnant, I have been thinking a lot about Mary and her pregnancy with our Savior. I think about my son all the time. I talk to him and pray over him. I think about his arrival when I get to hold him in my arms and see his face for the first time.

One of my favorite Christmas songs comes from The City on a Hill: It's Christmas Time. It's Sara Grove's song, Child of Love. Every year when I play the CD, that particular songs moves me. It has even greater meaning to me this year at Christmas. The lyrics are so beautiful, and I get goosebumps and teary-eyed every time I hear it.

Child of wonder, close your eyes

Rest here in my arms tonight

Someday you will save the world

But tonight I'll hold you right here in my arms

Precious miracle of life, child of love

Gift of hope, the gift of life from the Father above

And you were made for all mankind

You will always be mine, child of love

Gabriel's promise has come true

God has blessed this world with you

And as I humbly hold You now

In my heart I know I'm holding Heaven's child

Precious miracle of life, child of love

Gift of hope, the gift of live from the Father above

And you were made for all mankind

You will always be mine, child of love

Child of wonder, close your eyes

A Christmas craf tthat I made is actually something that I made a school with my fourth graders called light bulb ornaments. All you need is an old, light bulb that has burnt out, some paint, hot glue, and fabric scrapes.

Last year we made snow men by painting the light bulbs white, then putting textured snow over the paint, painted on a face, used some fabric scrapes to make a stocking cap over the metal part of the light and used yarn to make a scarf. We attached an ornament hook to the back of the hat with hot glue.

This year we made penguins. We pained the bulb black and white, painted buttons going down the middle, used hot glue to attached the eyes, pipe cleaner nose, and mittens cut out of fabric. We attached the hat to the metal again and then attached a pom-pom to the corner of the hat. They turned out so cute this year. I can't wait to make these ornaments with my children someday.

I hope that you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

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3 B's: Bread Baking, Birthday and Baby Boy

This week was quite an eventful week for me. All three events starting with the letter B! The best thing about the week happened on Monday when Brett and I had our first ultrasound of the pregnancy. We had been waiting anxiously to see what our little one looked like and to make sure he was developing healthy. We also got to find out that Baby Osborn was, in fact a boy! We were so thrilled. Both Brett and I wanted a little boy more than anything. Everyone kept telling us that it was going to be a girl through. Even our Bradley instructor thought it was going to be a girl. So I was mentally preparing myself for a girl. I knew that I would be delighted to have a girl, but there is family significance to having a boy. I even had a dream the night before that it was a girl, so I was pretty sure that I was having a girl. When we got into the room, the nurse told us she wouldn't tell us, rather let us try and figure out on our own. At first it was hard to even figure out what I was looking at, but then he moved his legs. I couldn't believe what I saw! I was speechless when the nurse asked me what it was, because I was afraid to jinx myself. Then Brett boldly asked, "Is it a boy?!?" The nurse said yes, and I burst out into tears of joy I couldn't believe my eyes, it was the second best thing I heard since becoming pregnant (the first being when we got to hear the heartbeat for the first time).

Here is a picture of his little, perfect foot!

and here he makes his grand debut with his first picture.

The second fun thing about this week was bread baking day at school. Every fall the fourth grade makes Bread-in-a-Bag. A retired teacher provides all the supplies and she even makes each student a jar of jelly. She and two other retired teachers (one who I got to teach with my first two years) come up to school to teach the fourth graders how to make bread. The kids love it and the whole school smells so good for the day. At the end of the day the students take home a bag with a whole loaf of bread that they made, a jar of jelly and the directions with the recipe so they can try it at home with their family. It really is an easy process!

Here is the recipe:

Mix 4 cups of flour, 1 package of yeast, 3 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt in a large gallon zip lock bag. Close the bag and shake to mix well. Open the bag to add 1 1/2 cups of hot water and 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Close the bag, and with your fingers, knead the dough until well incorporated. (The students loved this part, and since everything was in the bag, no mess on the desks or their hands!) You may add more flour if the dough is still sticky.

Spray bread pans with vegetable spray. Divide the dough into two equal halves. (Each bag makes two loaves of bread.) Put the dough into the bread pans and spray with vegetable spray. Let rise in a warm place. Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes. Let cool, then remove from pans. So easy! Plus you could easily add other spices like fresh rosemary or cinnamon.

At the end of the day we let the student try a little bit of the bread with the jelly and butter. We made our own butter too. All we did was put heavy cream in small little containers, seal tightly, and passed them around the classroom as the students took turns shaking the cream until it harden. We added a little salt for flavor, but it was pretty easy. Our kids loved the day! I loved the day too, except I was totally exhausted at the end of the day being on my feet all day and leaning over their desks to help knead.

Along with both these events, yesterday I celebrated my birthday with wonderful husband. He brought flowers home from work the night before, and we had dinner at my favorite Italian restaurant (we both agreed on no birthday gifts for each other this year as we are saving money and getting ready to bring our little boy into the world!) It was the end to a perfect week!

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