IsThIsInOuRFuTuRe

When asked what she wanted to be for Halloween she wanted to be just herself and wear normal clothes...Later in the week, she changed her mind and wanted to be a cheerleader.  Where does she get this from?  Confession: I was a cheerleader through middle school and high school.  I have already exposed her to cheerleading and I catch her doing cheers throughout the day.  She asks me to cheer with her...I do find myself playing along!  It's fun now, but we might want to encourage her to try other things!!!

A Little Blessing

Yesterday, Haley and I were taking Irish to the bathroom and we saw this beautiful, yellow butterfly in our backyard.  We both looked at each other, smiled, and said, "Thank you Jesus!"  I had to get a picture.  I was so thankful that I had my phone with me!

For those that don't know the significance of the butterfly, to us, it's a big deal.  Last summer when we lost Aleigha, we took Haley to get a "Lilly" (Haley's lamb blanket) for Aleigha.  We found a purple one with a butterfly on it.  We said that everytime we saw a butterfly, we could think of Aleigha. 

Two days after the memorial service Haley, my mother-in-law, and myself went to a petting zoo.  This was something to get our mind on something else and fun for Haley.  As we were leaving, a yellow butterfly followed us from the back of the petting zoo to the parking lot.  We knew this was a gift from God!  It was AWESOME! 

I wanted to plant something at our house that would attract butterflies, so I found out that this flower does.  It was just one flower last summer and now it has multiplied.  I have seen other butterflies on this but NEVER a yellow one.  With it being only 8 days til we reach the one year anniversary of Aleigha's short time with us, this was a blessing that I needed this week!

In The Words of Derry Prenkert "It Just Got Personal"

God has laid a huge burden on Jason and my heart for a certain group of women and their children in the Democratic Republic of the Congo(DRC) in Africa. The women have been raped and left to fend for themselves and their children. Their families and husbands have left them because in their mind they are “dirty.” Our friends Derry Prenkert and Caleb (Biz) Bizlow recently were in the DRC and personally met these women. One woman is 6 months pregnant as a result of the rape she encountered. Derry and Biz hearts broke for these women as they talked with them and heard their stories. When Jason and I heard this story our hearts broke too. We knew that we could not just sit back and watch. Something needed to be done.


Biz posted this on his blog a couple of days ago. This was our confirmation that God was calling us to take the lead on this project. Jason has posted a lot of information on his blog, including a video of these women. Click here to read more.

We are thinking of creative ways to get the funds for these women. I have come up with one that I hope some of you will take apart in. I am an Uppercase Living Demonstrator. Not sure what that is, click here. I have decided to take every bit of commission that I make on open houses, your personal orders and put toward this project. So, I am asking people to help me out with this. What does this mean? Well, you could do a book party, an open house at your home (it would take an hour or 2 out of you day), or just order individually. By purchasing a sticker for yourself or someone else, this would be an awesome way to remember that you helped these women and children have a roof over their heads.

So, are you up for the challenge? Think about it but most of all, PRAY about it. Please contact me at rthompson@goshenschools.org to schedule an Uppercase Living open house or order a sticker(s).  You can make a difference!

Thanks so much!
 

Thankful!

Yes. I am thankful for our soldiers who have risked their lives for our freedom! I thank them for that. But, I'm also thankful to have a break from school for awhile and spend time with this precious person! She keeps me busy! I love her so much and thank God daily for entrusting us with her.

ThE*eNd*Is*NeAr

Tomorrow is my last day teaching this group of 20 first graders. Nonetheless, I am SUPER excited! It has been quite the year. This has probably been the most challenging class in all the 7 years that I have taught. I'm ready for a break. It is always sad in a way to say goodbye to those youngsters after all the time and energy that is poured into them over the course of 9 months. I often wonder if I have made a difference. My goal each year is to develop a love for learning in them so that they are excited about coming to school. Am I sad this year? Maybe a little, but I will be seeing them again next year as I am moving to 2nd grade. Oh yeah, I also have to have my room all packed and moved by tomorrow afternoon. Just one more thing to add to the craziness of this school year.

This summer, school will be far from my mind. I am ready to enjoy my time home with Haley just being a mom, a wife, and a friend. You can find me swimming, riding bikes, blowing bubbles, writing with sidewalk chalk, and anything else that Haley wants to do!

So long 2009-2010 school year. I'm praying for a better year next year!

A Great Book!

If you know me, you know that I am not a big reader. It's something that I would like to do more but I just need to find books that interest me. That hasn't happened to me in a long time, until now. Jason bought this book thinking that it would be something that I would enjoy. OH MY GOODNESS! I could not put it down. My laundry and housework suffered because of it, but I didn't care. I will share more about it in future posts as I have learned so much from it. I am beginning to see our terrible loss of Aleigha differently since reading this book.

Stay tuned...More to come!

8 Years Ago I Married My Best Friend

Happy Anniversary Jason!

I am so thankful that God brought us together!
I love you so much!

Florida 2010

A couple of months ago Jason and I decided that we were going to take a family vacation. We couldn't go over my spring break so we were going to go at the beginning of may. This meant that I would be taking time off of work. That didn't seem like such a bad idea. We started getting all of the plans together when Jason's mom and dad asked if we ALL wanted to go to Florida together. Without hesitation, we said YES!

So, last week we made the trip to the great Orlando, FL. This was Haley's second time in FL. The first time she was 4 months old. I highly doubt she will remember that trip. We flew this time. Haley did AMAZING on the plane(s). She was a real trooper. Her schedule was so interrupted, but didn't seem to bother her one bit.

We spent most of the time at the pool at our resort. We ventured to The Magic Kingdom one of the days. It was probably the most fun I have ever had there. I loved watching Haley interact with the characters, and just be in awe at the place "where dreams come true." She absolutely loved it. In fact, when we were leaving to come home, she asked if we could come back again next month. That made me smile! She didn't get scared at all. If you know Haley, it takes her awhile to warm up to anyone. She was so brave and really took it all in!

I loved being in the warmth and sunshine. I am looking forward for that kind of weather here!

Thanks Duane and Karen for making this trip possible for us!

It's Been 2 Years!

Wow! It's been a LONG time since I have blogged. I am ready to start picking this back up again. I have alot to write and am looking forward to getting it out. So much has happened that it will take many posts to catch up. I have no idea if anyone will read this but, that's ok. It will be healing for me! So, to those out there, enjoy!