i love when the weekend comes! matt and i conked out last night--but not before going to a mexican dive in ocean beach, getting some tacos for dinner, and eating them on the seawall as we watched the sun set and the surfers catch some waves. today matt the workhorse said that he's going to work again, so i might go check out some of the museums around town. haven't done that yet.

funny quotes from kids yesterday:
i was having a conversation with two of my third graders as all the kids were leaving yesterday and here's how it went:
tom: i am a huge follower of captain underpants and diaper baby books!
me: oh, are you? i was thinking about ordering some, should i?
tom: yeah!
karina: mrs. edwards, why are you under there?
(and this girl is a total space cadet and i wasn't under anything, so i totally fell for it!)
me: under where?
karina and tom: you just said "underwear" !!!!

and matt claims this is the best one so far. i can't decide, there are so many good ones!

when i work with my "s" kids, i always tell them to keep their tongue behind thier teeth (it likes to come out and make a "th" lisp, that everyone has heard!).
so i say, "keep the lion in the cage!" and every time we have speech, we decide which animal we want our tongue to be that day. keep in mind i have a 1st grader and a second grader:

me: so what animal do you want your tongue to be today?
kyle: mine is a tiger, again.
keegan: um, i'm thinking.
me: well, mine is a baboon. keegan, did you decide yet?
keegan: um....
kyle: is it a piece of poop?
me: (people, you would have been so proud of me, i did not crack a smile, although i wanted to laugh at the ridiculousness!) is that a word we say in speech?
kyle: no.
me: ok.
keegan: (answering kyle's original question, apparently unmoved) no... um... i think it's a spider monkey.

welp, enough of that! i'm off!
tracey

oh yeah, emily--thanks so much for the sweet care package!
sorry to say that matt and i did not have enough self control to wait for the oscars to eat all of our candy.... we snarfed down quite a bit right away!!! we do still have the popcorn, m&m's, and fun dip left, to name a few! so we did save a little for the big night--can't wait!!! yeah chicago!

happy 23rd birthday justin!!!
have a great one!
we love you!
tracey

i just got back from a perfect weekend with my husband.
ahhhh...
it is SO MUCH FUN being married! it was fun to begin with, but it gets even more and more fun as we go!
we hung out at the beaches a lot this weekend, especially at our favorite san diego beach, san elijo. so peaceful and beautiful. there were a ton of surfers out this weekend, too, and they were fun to watch. as were at least 5 dolphins swimming along the shore, galloping in the water. also, we got to see a whale spout water up a few times, and matt actually saw it rise out of the water at one point! we watched the sun set and had a perfect view near the bottom of the cliffs on the beach. we went out to eat at a romantic italian restaurant--they brought me a thornless rose at the end of the meal! today we did some shopping and bought a couple of shirts, walked around pacific beach and mission beach, and now i'm home. matt is out playing basketball.
and now it is back to the daily grind, but we're both refreshed and ready. it helps to know that we're going to joshua tree in a couple of weeks, too!
tracey

hey mom--it's about time for your monthly blog, don't you think?
we'll be praying for your safe and fun time in chowtown!
mini blog today, as matt and i are about to eat stuffed crust pizza--ever since michelle mentioned it on her blog, i've been in the mood!!!
nice blog, emily, i love max lucado--his words are so simple yet they penetrate my soul...
p.s. everyone should go to a chiropractor--it feels so good and i've never been so healthy!!!
the end

welp, it's wednesday night and sort of felt like a friday. my kids had a half day, so i was supposed to be writing report cards. distractibility set in and i ended up eating lunch, chatting with coworkers, making a speech game, and getting my billing done. it was actually productive, i just didn't get the report cards done. oh well, another minimum day tomorrow (we have one every week--now i finally do, since another SLP is taking my charter school).
it's been feeling like spring lately-like it's staying lighter longer, the weather is warming up, rain time, and that weird spring fever that i get every year! i thought it would go away now that i live on the west coast, but little things bring back such strong memories of the joy of spring in ohio.... can anyone else relate? it's difficult to put into words.
my favorite part of winter here is the blooming of new flowers. february seems to be the month for that-new colors appear on plants everywhere and make the air smell so sweet.

matt and i are trying to figure out where we want to go on vacation this summer--SO HARD!!! too many places to go...
on the list of potential places to visit in the next few years
1. yosemite national park
2. seattle
3. drive/camp up the coast on hwy 1 (especially big sur, monterey/carmel, san fran)
4. ireland
5. colorado
6. joshua tree national park
7. grand canyon

recommendations from anyone who has been to any of these places are welcome...
well, enough dreaming and planning for me
i'll leave you all with a quote from a kid today:
"sometimes i forget where i am" from a sweet little boy trying to find his way back to his class.
yeah, me too.
tracey

wow-the crutches clip is great, justin! i can't wait to see it! to those of you who haven't checked out the clip for justin's new short, do so!
i also can't wait for christopher guest's "a mighty wind". i searched for it on google and didn't pay attention, but the first link it lead to was a funny end times prophetic messianic jew website with all these flames and stuff. it was hilarious because for a minute i was like, wait, where's christoper guest?

best blog quote of the week from mary, which made me feel overwhelmed with God:
"THE LORD! THE King of the heavens before there was time! Bow down mare! Just let it roll off and bow down to Me! Wow, I love God! To see His face after the earth....whoa that alone to fuel the day..." it did fuel my day, so thank you...

also, i've been so into the song, hungry, a vineyard worship song. it's just blowing me away right now...

hungry
i come to you
for i know you satisfy
i am empty but i know
your love does not run dry

and so i wait for you
so i wait for you

i'm falling on my knees
offering all of me
jesus you're all this heart is living for

broken
i run to you
for your arms are open wide
i am weary but i know
your touch restores life

so i wait for you
so i wait for you

i'm falling on my knees
offering all of me
jesus you're all this heart is living for

-tracey

how in the world is this the last day of february???
time is truly flying!!!

matt and i went to see juliana theory and something corporate last night (i was actually sort of dreading it since juliana's new album is so unbelievably sub par metallica!) however, they put on a pretty good show (boring set, though) and something corporate actually majorly EXCEEEDED my expectations!!! those guys were great and sort of had ben folds vibe with the piano scene. but so solid and great stage presence!!!

i had a good week-very busy-and obtained some fun quotes from the kiddos (i never even remember 90% of the hilariousness that i hear everyday, so here's just a few)!

the most fun time was when i was in a first grade classroom, sitting on the floor with the kids during their spanish lesson (at one of my schools, they get spanish every day for 30 minutes!). i was doing some in-class therapy with a hearing impaired child but sitting at the back of the group with some other kids. at one point, a little girl said, "do you have gum in your mouth?" and i said, "yes", because i knew she had already seen it. and instantly i had the attention of 3 other kids--"you're not allowed to have gum in school!" and usually at this point i say something about kids not being allowed, but i'm an adult and all that stuff that used to make me mad when i was a kid. however, this time i paused, they were watching and waiting, and i put my finger to my lips and smiled and said, "shhhh! i know. don't tell your teacher or i'll be in big trouble!" and they all started giggling and turned back to their activitiy. except one cute little blond peanut who i see for speech, who grinned and said, "it'th gonna cothst you a thsticker!" so i took the deal. what else could i do? it was my reputation on the line, people!!!

best quote from a kindergartener this week:
"where do you sleeep?", while looking around my therapy room, searching for a bed.

we're going out for mexican tonight with our friends marni and ed but no other big plans for the weekend. it's been raining off and on for the past few days, but i won't complain, considering the plight of my poor friends and relatives in ohio (i don' think i've slammed it lately, either!). maybe you guys need a vacation in san diego!
welp i'm done for now.
chow. (yes, i know that's not the correct spelling, but i like this spelling better!)
tracey

oops, didn't check my spelling the first time around--kerouac, i mean!
anyways, another monday down.
yesterday was a marathon day of watching reality tv and i'm done for a long time--really sick of it. but i need to veg out every once in awhile...

nothing much new to say today but was reading a good word about worry and anxiety...

so do not worry or be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will have worries and anxieties of its own. sufficient for each day is its own trouble. matthew 6:34
the book i'm reading, "the battlefield of the mind", brought in the verse in john 10:10, that the enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy---ie, in the situation of worry and anxiety: stealing your time and energy, killing your joy, and destroying your peace of mind. when i think about it in this way, it totally makes me want to fight against worry! i can choose to not accept a worrisome thought that will take up even a minute of my life, much less allow it to dominate my thoughts. besides, as the scripture says, there's enough trouble in each day as it is--if we add to it, it's our own choice (and our own fault!).
the end
tracey

wow, it's been so long! first of all, matt and i had such a great weekend in san francisco--really one of the best trips i've taken. i really loved the city, the coastline, everything was so beautiful!
matt and i left last friday morning and got to SF at 6:30pm. we stayed with joel and his roommates, astevens, bstevens, and mccann, who live in a quaint beach town called pacifica (about 15 minutes south of SF). friday was valentines day, so went took the BART subway downtown SF for some dinner. we strolled through china town and ended up in north park, the italian district at a cool little restaurant. tasty food and great chianti. the best part was when matt "blew up the bathroom" and then lied about it to a girl who had been waiting outside to use it! after dinner we went to this cool bar called vesuvios where jack kerouak hung out in his day- cool pub atmosphere, especially the upstairs. we headed home for the night and laid around chatting in the living room (there are 4 boys in the one bedroom apt, and then we barged in! total of = 5 air mattresses in that place!!!)

saturday morning we lazed around the apartment and then matt and i went exploring in the afternoon, got some lunch and found a perfect spot (about a block away from their apt) sitting on the edge of a cliff overlooking the HUGE pacific, chatting and drinking hot chocolate. when joel got back from class, we went downtown to the chinese new year festival. there were tons of people on the closed-off streets--totally packed in. the parade was, um,... how do i say this? sort of random, including the usual dragon things, firecrackers, and a clown that flashed us and had a stuffed animal lion below the belt--CUCKOO. then it started to rain on us, which eventually became rather fun! there were also random, 20 minute sections where there was nothing--and then something else would come down the street. we got tired of waitng for the ending so we left the parade early to find some food in china town. long story there, the service was horrible and had to argue with our waitress over price, but very funny experience. after dinner we went to this other cool fisherman’s bar/grill place--really wharf-core, including a doorman wearing a rain slicker with long grey hair and beard--so moby dick! it had all kinds of cool things all over the walls, very fun. it was still raining when we were done and had to walk about 15 blocks to the BART to get home. wet dogs, all of us. joel thought it would be hilarious to start kicking puddles of water at astevens, while getting the rest of us wet. highlight: astevens ran over to a balloon arch, buried his face in it and started biting and popping balloons...

sunday, easily one of the best days of my life. we woke up around nine, the boys donned their wetsuits, and we headed out to surf at this great spot called linda mar. the boys charged the waves while i hung out on the beach, took in the BEAUTY, read, and took pictures. we went back to the apt, got cleaned up, got some lunch at a cool italian deli and matt, joel, astevens, mccann and i went to muir woods for a hike. i had never seen redwoods before, and was in awe. besides that, the streams and creeks running through, total GREEN, cool, and best smell in the world dominated my senses! i think one of my favorite parts about it was that we so naturally interacted with each other--you would be talking to one person, then come to a curve in the path, another person would pass you, and you'd be instantly chatting with someone else. we walked and talked and we IN AWE OF GOD. after our perfect hike, the boys dudes took us up to sausilito, this great lookout point, witha perfect view of the golden gate bridge and the city-spectacular. from the lookout point we drove down to the haight asbury district (think hippie movement) for some dinner. we went to this cool Mediterranean (my favorite!) place called kan zemans. the atmosphere was so cool, dark, red lamps, everyone sitting cross-legged on cushions around your table. i had some tasty lamb kabobs and rice, and warm, spiced wine--yummy. after dinner we walked around a bit and checked out the scene--matt got offered pot several times. we ended up stumbling into a jazz club that looked very retro and fifties. the band was just starting so we decided to check it out and stayed for a couple of hours. the scene was perfect for my very first martini. also my very last disgusting-2-sips-of-and-couldn't-handle-it martini. sorry mare, bad news--it tastes horrible. the jazz was great, the atmosphere was perfect, and our great trip was winding down. those guys really were great hosts and so fun!

we had to leave on monday morning, but we decided to drive down the coast to at least monterey. highway 1 was gorgeous!!!! just driving on the curve of a cliff, waves crashing below. we stopped in monterey, which was a great little bay sort of town, with little shops and brick roads. we checked out fisherman's wharf and cannery row (see matt's reference for starflyer) i wanted to check out big sur, but by the time we were done with monterey it was 3:00 or so and we had about 7 more hours to go. we got home about 9:30, almost 12 hours in the car, we were tired, and already reminicient of our great time, but glad we were coming home to warm san diego.

so we've been through another work week, and i have great news!!! they finally got me some help and another speech therapist is going to take over my caseload at the charter school (which was getting out of control, in the number of kids that i had to see). so that is a relief and i will finally be able to catch up, i think...
other highlights--great bible study we've gotten into, and matt and i went to a party last night with his friends from work and played games--it actually was really fun! today i'm going to my friend's house to hang out in her garden and maybe help her plant some stuff.
hope everyone is well.
tracey

hello all.
monday again over here, and a pretty painless one, i must say!
(aside from having a meeting during my lunch time)
you know, this is the first year that i have faithfully taken a lunch break every day, and i'm the better for it! up until this year, i have stayed in my office and eaten at my desk while doing work for lunch. i think that because i live 5 minutes away from my schools, i have an excuse to go home and eat and relax and get away. then when i get back, i'm a new person! i have only 1.5 or 2 hours left of my day and that seems like nothing! what a concept, taking a lunch break!

anyhoo, on to less boring things....
matt and i had a fun weekend. on friday we went to this cool club called "the W", which has an outdoor floor with sand, a firepit, little cabanas, and plants everywhere--very cool and very tropical. we had a drink and then we walked to a restaurant in little italy and had some pizza. we came home and watched "sweet home alabama", which was a very sorry movie= D- in my book. horrible script writer(s), etc. which is too bad, because i like reese witherspoon.
then on saturday, i got a ton of stuff done in the morning while my silly husband slept in until 1:30 pm. then we went to sunset cliffs and watched the ocean and surfers. at one point i thought i saw a seal, but i wasn't wearing my glasses. foolishly, i tried to convince matt where the seal's head was, and he pointed out that it was actually a piece of wood. i conceded. after all, he does have better eyesight. then we went out to eat with some friends at a mexican joint, walked downtown for awhile, and went home (matt was feeling weird). we tried to watch SNL but both fell asleep--are we old or what!??!!

today we got a fun package of goodies that mom and dad got from tanzania! yay, i can't wait to put the guestbook in our guestroom and have everyone sign it when they come and stay with us! and everything else was awesome, too (i love matches, dad, thanks for remembering!).

mary sanford, where are you? how did the CBEST go? were the proctors nazi's or what!??
mom, it was good to hear from your blog--sounds like you had a lot of fun in TZ.

welp, i'm off to the chiropractor and then on to get matt his imac! that's the last i'll be seeing of him for the next few days...
tracey

after dad's monster entry, i feel the need to write at least a LITTLE something!
it's been a good week--thank God thursday is over! it is my most difficult day because i have to see 20 kids in the morning before lunch (in case you don't already know, ideal is to see 7 kids in the am, realistic is to see 12 or 13) and then go to a ridiculous charter school in the afternoon, where i have too many kids to see (and am therefore out of compliance every week). so ahhhhhhh...breathing a sigh of relief now.

we had a fun time with joel-had some good food, chats, and he and matt got to bond with surfing and cigars. then we'll go to san francisco on feb 14th. i can't wait! it will be the furthest north i have been on the west coast in my life!!! just a sidenote: joel shares the same hatred of L.A. that we have, therefore, many comments were made about that city of trash. and i have a powerful statement to make in regards to that issue: I WOULD RATHER LIVE IN ANY TOWN IN OHIO THAN LIVE IN L.A. to those who know me well, you understand how much i hate ohio and how taking that over l.a. is HUGE....

best quote from a kid today:
i was reading a book to a little 6 year old autistic boy named rex. the book was about a dragon and a boy and i came to a line where i put on my best dragon voice and said, "I'M GOING TO EAT YOU UP!". i looked at rex so he would comment on what was happening in the story but he reached over, held my hand, and whispered, "don't be scared-i'll take care of you. i won't let him eat you."

and now for the personal messages:
dad, that was a good word--matt and i have felt like that a thousand times--i think me, moreso than him, but there's nothing like a glimpse of poverty to make you (well, me) want to throw off everything in this life in the u.s., just go simple, and give the extra to those who need it.

by the way emily, i would go with the glue stick--i, too, used to have fears about the items peeling off, but not so with these new-fangled glue sticks! they really work. just make sure it is acid free, that always helps.

oops, i'm running late, i have to go pick up matt so we can get adjusted by our chiropractor!!!
byebye
tracey

i can finally tell the exciting news that i have!!!
my brother ryan and his wife michelle are expecting a baby!!!
so now it's aunt tracey and uncle matt over here...
i had to wait to tell because they wanted to tell grammy and granddad in person and i didn't want to spoil the surprise. so now they know they'll be great grandparents and i can open my big mouth. yay! i'm so excited!

everything is great, as usual, here in san diego.
joel is visiting from san fran and we'll be heading up his way in a couple of weeks as well.
welp, i'm out.
tracey

the surf report, by tracey edwards
8th grade
mrs. sanford's class
2-1-03
i ended up getting a wetsuit yesterday and matt and i hit the waves at mission beach. when we first looked at the water the waves were 2-4 feet, evenly spaced, perfect for just learning. then 30 minutes later, after i got my suit, the waves were 4-6 feet and one after the other. it was pretty hard to paddle out, but i did, and instantly got wiped out on my first wave--and totally in shock b/c of the freezing water. after the first dunk, however, the wetsuit kept me pretty warm and i didn't even notice the temperature. the lifeguards kept coming out on their jetskis, warning people about the ripcurrents and the water was really rough. i coasted in on my stomach a few more times, practiced paddling out, and then got pulled one too many times by the undertow before i decided that i'd try again tomorrow. matt took a few waves in, got up a couple times, but instantly flew off. i stood giggling on the sand and he stood up and waved his arms to show me he was okay. all in all, a fun first day of surfing. the end

yes! i did change my template--i had to, in order to put links to everyone else's blogs. but have no fear, if you click on archives, you can see my previous blogs with the festive fruit page. i will miss it, but i will enjoy having those links much more!!! farewell.
tracey

wow, it's been almost a week since i've updated! i didn't realize that i had been slacking...
it's been a good, busy week. there's never enough time to get done what i would like to get done! thursday was especially fun because my friend sue (who i worked with in wauseon) was visiting in cali and her friend drove her down here to visit with me! they came for dinner and we chatted until 11 pm and they went on their way. so much fun!

it has been nearly 80 degrees every day this week--yeah!!! unseasonably warm, apparently, but that's fine with me! the nights are much cooler though (55 degrees) so it doesn't exactly feel like summer. today is supposed to cool off, unfortunately--i was hoping the water would be a little bit warmer. oh well...

there's a wetsuit sale at a surfshop nearby so that's what we'll do today, get a wetsuit for me and then hit the beach! my first time surfing--a monumental moment in my life at age 27...
hopefully, i'll get some tips from joel when he comes to visit, too (monday)!

i discharged another child from therapy today. she had met all her goals and is within normal limits so i was pumped! so i was preparing her a few weeks ahead and telling her that she was doing so well that she would be graduating from speech class. and then when we had our last speech day (i had her alone for a special graduation celebration/diploma, etc.) she started crying. it was so sweet. have i ever mentioned how much i love my job??? ;)

best quote from a kid this week:
keegan: "mrs. edwards, i made up a song about growing up, do you want to hear it?"
me: "of course"
keegan: "when i grow up, up, up
i'll get a tarantula
and two weiner dogs dogs dogs
and a snake snake snake
that has spots spots spots
and looks like a chocolate chip cookie."

mindless kiddie fun over here--it actually had a real tune and sounded pretty good!

and now for some personal messages:
mom and dad edwards, we're praying for your safe return to ohio and we're so glad you had this wonderful adventure!
grammy and granddad--are you having a good time with ryan and michelle?
justin-i mean really, those fulbright people could only go with the subpar stuff that the BGSU weirdos gave you--you're totally deserving of it. i can't wait until i see the day where people (on a large scale) appreciate your creativity and humor and hard work.
mike-whoa on the math jargon, but i do love the info on my favorite nutty prof dr. fulcher, and about being absolute truth in math and relating it to God--that blew me away.
teri and mike-i love you guys--when are you coming to visit?
michelle ho- ditto! and your babies are so beautiful!
emily- where you been? you my baby daddy and he never get to see you!

welp, i'm off to pay the bills--
tracey

memo:
the reason why i am excited is not that i am pregnant.
so all of you who have written to me about it (and those of you who haven't written it but were thinking it), sorry, that is not my exciting news. tune in next week to find out what it is!

well, matt went surfing yesterday and it was so fun to watch him! he actually got up on the board and rode a wave for a second. he also had our board do a nosedive into the sand and now we have our first official dent/crack in our board! i don't have a wetsuit yet, so i just cheered from the beach!

matt is watching the superbowl right now at our friends house and i am watching movies at our apartment. i woke up with white spots on my throat this morning so i'm taking it easy and trying to avoid getting full-fledged sick. you know, sleeping, eating raw foods (secret from grandma lungstrum) and taking vitamins. i'll also go get adjusted tomorrow, so that should help, too.

i hear cheering down on the streets, i hope it is not for the raiders. those people are out of control and i can not wait until they leave my city!!! ;)

matt and i went to see adaptation friday night and chicago last night. chicago had some really great music and i thoroughly enjoyed it. apparently, too much music for matt, though--he just thought it was okay. adaptation gave me mixed emotions--the ending was sort of a surprise and an unpleasant one, at that. then later when i thought about it i laughed and was amused. if you've seen it, you probably already know what i'm talking about. also, a friend from junior high and high school was in the movie (she was the waitress that nicholas cage hits on)--that's always fun to see.

welp, i'm going to eat some soup and get some more sleep!
tracey

yay! i'm excited but i can't say why just yet... i will soon!

matt and i went to wahoo's tonight for yummy tacos--so good.
we've spent the last two nights at the chiropractor's office. apparently, the damage done to my neck in my recent sledding accident is worse than my car accident from a few years ago (the first 4 vertebrae in my neck are compressed and straight). so, an expensive and painful (yet, still fun to get all that air) sledding trip for me.

tonight we're going to see the movie "chicago" together (matt pretends like he's complaining but deep down he enjoys musicals, as i've stated before). tomorrow we'll go hiking and surfing at torrey pines and then sunday a superbowl party at our friends (marnie and eddie) place. the city is psycho right now with all the weirdo raiders fans here--get out of our town!!!! ha! but there are a ton of things going on in the city, free concerts, etc, however, i'm not a huge fan of large, drunken crowds, so it is doubtful that we will partake in the festivities. 100,000 extra people here--so crowded!

i feel exhausted since the past three nights i have been awakened in the middle of the night and have not been able to fall back asleep--so weird. usually stress can do that to me, but i don't really feel stressed right now. hmm. and that's a boring thing to write about so i'm changing the subject.

quote of the day from me:
"NEVERMIND" i said loudly to a lady who was yelling at me for asking her a question over the phone. then i hung up on her! it was so liberating. but i'm still always so shocked when people are mean to me for no reason. but i don't have to take it like i always have in the past.

quote of the day from a kid:
we were reading a book where the character had the power to control people, so i asked my kids, "what would you do if you had the power to control people?"
"could we control bad guys?" one child asked.
"yes," i said.
"then if the bad guy was trying to attack my sister, i would control him and make him stop and make him---well, no, i wouldn't kill him because even though there are bad guys, God still wouldn't like it if you killed them because he still loves them no matter what---but i would make him go away and then i would control him and make him want to be a good guy!"

grammy, i love what your minister said to you (and demonstrated) when you were little. what an impact that must have had on you.
well everyone, my laundry is calling me and then off to the movie.
tracey

we got a surfboard today!!!!
a sweet 9-foot longboard.
we are so pumped and can't wait to use it!!!
matt got a wetsuit but i found a better one at another shop so i'm waiting...
we're going to take a lesson pretty soon and then it's time to be out of control. matt thinks he's going to be getting up before work to catch the waves, but i don't know if i could ever love something so much that i would get up at 4:30 am for it. at least not consistently...
welp, off to watch blue crush and be inspired by all the surfer girls
tracey

my life has been made so much easier by technology, once again!
i now have access to the system that lets me write IEPs online and it fills in a good portion of the information for me, not to mention the time i save just by typing instead of handwriting!!!
i am feeling such relief because i wrote 3 of them in one day-- i was lucky to get one done by handwriting (so many extra forms and info to fill out). YAY!!!

my favorite quote from a kid today:
i was showing one of my groups (2 boys+1 girl) my new speech room and i said, "look at this you guys!!! isn't this so great??? don't you love it??"
and this one little boy took a lap around it yelled, "YES! let's celebrate with a hug!!!" and ran and hugged me!

i'm so glad it is friday. matt and i went out to a great mexican restaurant and rented some movies from blockbuster. we're going to just lay around and be lazy tonight and save up our energy for tommorow's hike. and the best part is this monday, where i can just SLEEP IN with matt and lay around and do everything i normally couldn't do on a typical working monday.

have no fear, mary. although i have been slightly tempted to do summer school (it's only 4 weeks, i think) i am making myself have a full summer off with no working. there's too much i want to do here! so what does casey's summer school musings do to your alaska summer? are you guys still thinking about seattle as well? i was checking out some flight prices--too expensive now, but i'm sure the prices will go down in the spring. by the way, united airlines is having a special where you can fly from LA to london for $169/ticket--that's way cheaper than flying home to ohio!!!! you have to do the travelling by march 31st, though, so it's a no no for us... but anyone else who has a more flexible schedule may be interested.

justin and mary, i'm going through the same spiritual battles you are, it seems. check out what oswald chambers has to say in "my utmost..." on aug 26, july 4, may 23, and especially jan 27. they will blow you away, as they have done to me.

God is making us spell out our own souls...
--oswald chambers, from "my utmost for his highest", jan 12