100th Day of Kindergarten

If you haven't visited a kindergarten classroom since you were in kindergarten let me just tell you....you are missing out!! Yes, kindergarten has indeed changed quite a bit since the 80's when I went to school. Yes, it is very focused on academics but at the same time you would not believe the fun, hands-on, exciting learning opportunities that take place everyday!

Today was one of my personal favorites. I always look forward to the 100th day of Kindergarten! Beginning on the first day of school, we start counting the days of school. Each day during math, we add a day to our number line and slowly watch it grow. Each week that goes by, the anticipation builds as we await the 100th day. The whole school anticipates the 100th day. For those of you who don't know...there are 180 days of school. But the 100th day is so much fun to celebrate! It's fun because it celebrates how far we have come and how close we are to becoming 1st graders! It's also an awesome time to practice a lot of exciting math, reading, and writing activities surrounding the number 100. It's also fun to celebrate how we have grown as a classroom "family" over the 100 days. We've spent a lot of quality time together...about 700 hours!

Today, the kids read books about the 100th day of school, practiced writing to 100, each wrote 100 words, drew a picture of what they think they will look like when they are 100 years old, counted by 1's, 5's and 10's to 100, brought in their collections of 100 items from home to share with the class and count, took 100 steps in the hallway and measured how far it took us to get to our destination, and then capped off the day by singing "Happy 100th Day" and enjoying a cookie cake! Yummy!

I look at these kiddos and see so much progress. My, how they have grown and changed in 100 days! I am just like a proud mommy when I ponder how far they have come. I just had to share them on my blog because they are a part of our family. They are a huge part of me. I love them deeply and I love my job. Jon and I pray for them daily. Yes, they have grown remarkably in 100 short days in all academic areas. They now read fluently, know about the world around them, enjoy exploration and experiments in science, have great social skills and manners, and are little mathematicians! But most importantly, I see how they have grown in character, stamina, determination, love, pride, and self confidence. Happy 100th Day! Only 80 days left...the count down is on!

Pamper Leslie Party

Last night, I went to a party for my dear friend, Leslie. She is pregnant with their fourth baby and her sister-in-law and another friend threw her a "Pamper Party"! We met at Logan's and enjoyed a yummy dinner and celebrated Leslie and the wonderful mommy she is. We each gave her gifts that will help her feel special as she awaits the birth of Jace and then recovers from her c-section. All of these women are amazing mommies and we all go to the same church which is neat. We all love you, Leslie! We cannot wait to meet little Jace in a few short weeks! Congratulations!!

Crib Arrives!

Ansley's crib arrived Friday night. We couldn't wait to put it together. Jon is GREAT with the furniture. It only took him about 30 minutes to get it together. I was so excited when the delivery truck pulled up outside....I just had to take a picture. We ordered it back in November! I know many of you have asked for pictures of the nursery and we are almost ready to take some and send them out. We still need to buy a chair and get the missing curtain from Restoration Hardware. I promise I will send pictures very soon :)

Our new nephew

Jon's brother Jason and his wife Jenny welcomed their second child into the world last night! We are thrilled to have another beautiful nephew! We love you already Silas and we cannot wait to meet you. Our family is growing quickly. In May, Jon's twin sister Rachel and her husband Nathan, gave us our first nephew, precious Noah. Now, another nephew has arrived and they will both get to meet our little Ansley very soon. Wow, three babies in less than one year. What a blessing! Silas has a big sister, Sienna, who is going to be a wonderful friend to him. Congratulations Jason, Jenny, and Sienna! We love you all!

Guidance for the Journey

"Whenever the cloud lifted from above the Tent, the Israelites set out; wherever the cloud settled, the Israelites encamped...At the Lord's command they encamped, and at the Lord's command they set out. They obeyed the Lord's order, in accordance with his command through Moses." (Numbers 9:17, 23)

These days I think it would be just wonderful if I had a continual manifestation of God's presence to guide me like the cloud He provided for His children in the desert. In spending time reading and talking with Jesus this week, I have needed His gentle reminder that when I take His hand, I can walk with confidence. Someone asked me the other day if I am "ready" for Ansley to arrive and my response was "I feel like everything I have ever needed to do needs to be done in the next 8 weeks!" You see, as many of you know, I am quite the organizer, planner, and scheduler. I have this strong sense that everything in my life needs to be in order immediately...not just in regards to Ansley but in regards to work, our home, paperwork, making sure I'm spending quality time with Jon and my family, etc. It is an overwhelming feeling. I also find myself seeking to set up boundaries so that once our little girl arrives our lives, through different and much better, will still be our lives...just with a precious new addition. Do you know what I mean? Jon and I both want our purpose and mission as a family to be accentuated by the birth of our little one and not compromised. We want to watch how He weaves Ansley into "The Mitchell Family" and helps use her to fulfill His purposes through us. Please don't misunderstand me, I know there will be months of adjusting and yes of course she will be a priority but we have talked to many couples who have reminded us to continue to make our time with Jesus and with one another a top priority. We will still be Jon and Karen and we will still have other things that are important to us and that we are passionate about. Yes, we will be mommy and daddy but we will still be husband, wife, daughter, son, sister, brother, teacher, business man, friend, and most of all disciples of Jesus. Our strong desire and prayer is that we will find balance in our new roles. We do realize that we will need to adjust and make things work for our family. We could not be happier that Ansley is about to make her beautiful debut into our family!!!

These days, I find myself in a place I've never been. We (Jon and I) are about to enter a new phase of life. I feel like we are about to embark on a new journey. We have our backpacks packed, our hiking boots on, and we (you know the planners that we are!) have our checklist in our hands making sure as to not forget anything important. We have our map. The only thing we don't have is a travel brochure that shows us the beautiful place we are headed to!

Well, this morning as I was processing many of these thoughts, Jesus spoke to me through my daily devotional which was perfectly titled today..."Guidance for the Journey". The verse above was the key verse and I was reminded that when we enter unfamiliar territory we are soon reminded that on our own we stumble. God wants to take us to a place we have never been before and can't get to without His help.

I know this new place God has for the Mitchell family is incredible and so we choose to follow Him and "settle" where the cloud settles and "move on" when the cloud leaves. Oh, the destination that awaits us! How incredible that this is the beginning of our 8th year together (Jon and I have been dating/married a combination of eight years now) and that in the Bible "8" is symbolic of "new beginnings". Thank you Jesus, for helping me see this morning that in all of the chaos and busyness, you are helping us prepare for this new journey! Jesus, help us to obey your orders. Help us to follow where you lead. Help us to listen to you and know when to stay where we are at along the journey and when to move ahead. We cannot wait to see how you use us and our new daughter to advance your Kingdom.

Ansley's 4-D Photo Shoot

We had a 4-D ultrasound of Ansley a few weeks ago. If any of you have never had a 4-D or seen pictures from one, don't fear the bumpiness and fuzzyness is normal and is not a true depiction of her skin! Due to fluid and such, they did not turn out nearly as clear as we had hoped. However, she is perfectly normal, healthy, and was adorable on the ultrasound as she sucked her thumb, rubbed her eyes, opened one eye, and even gave us a little smile. The nurse said every part of her body measured exactly what it should be measuring and that it was indicating that she weighed about 3 lbs. Enjoy the pictures!! We can't wait to see her in person!!

Inauguration

Tuesday, January 20th marked the inauguration of our new President. Although I did not vote for Obama, I do chose to respect him and honor him as our nation's leader. During this campaign and election, my heart has been softened and challenged towards righteousness and respect as I reflect on the teachings I have learned from John Bevere and his book, Honor's Reward: How to Attract God's Favor and Blessing. I've often overlooked the spiritual law of honor. I have often joined in as popular culture fights against the practice of honoring its leaders and as society in general resists authority and thus reaps the consequence of that disobedience. Although I do not endorse all of Obama's viewpoints and therefore do not honor dishonorable behavior or beliefs that are contrary to the doctrine of Christ, I do honor him because God's word commands that I "honor those in authority, pray for them, and walk in obedience to the Word of the Lord." We must realize that it is God, not man or even demonic forces, that brings a human being into legitimate authority. Throughout history, God has appointed every leader, whether their behavior has been good or harsh. He or she has been ordained for a specific reason, never by accident. In the case of a harsh leader, their authority is God appointed but their behavior is not originated by God. The leader will give an account to God, but in the meantime those of us who are under their rule will be tested, as was David. If we honor, we will be greatly rewarded.

So, yesterday on Inauguration, I chose to honor our new leader. I find it remarkable that my students who are primarily African-American can witness such a day in history. Our school celebrated in a big way! We had an assembly, dressed in our best clothes, watched the inauguration, and even went to an "inauguration lunch".Back in November, I believe it was vital that this young generation see our freedom and passion to vote and I equally believe it is important that this young generation see that regardless of who was chosen we now honor and respect the new leader of our country on inauguration day. For my students to see a man who is partly African-American seize his dream yesterday and take an oath to become our President was a marked day for them.....a day of hope. Yes, they are 5 and 6 years old but in speaking with them they understood what this meant for them and their families. I hope all children realize that whether we agree or disagree with the one chosen, we did have a choice, an opportunity to vote, and likewise an opportunity to honor and pray for our new leader.

Family Baby Shower in Georgia

We were blessed to receive another baby shower for Ansley on Sunday, January 18th. The shower was in Georgia. Thank you to all our wonderful family and friends who made the shower so beautiful. Ansley received many beautiful clothes, some gorgeous smocked dresses and gowns, and a gift card to Target that mommy used to purchase several baby necessities that were still needed. It was wonderful to see all of you and get to spend some time together. I also loved having both of my grandmothers there. My dad (Ansley's Papa) and my grandpa were able to join in on the shower as well. Thanks everyone!

Special Gift

Today, Rachel (my sister-in-law) gave me a precious gift. She asked all of my close friends and family who are moms to write me well-wishes and advice as I prepare to welcome Ansley and begin the journey into motherhood. She compiled them into a notebook for me. To all of you who wrote me a letter....thank you from the bottom of my heart. The notes were so meaningful and precious to me and to Jon. I appreciate the advice and encouragement. Your kind words and blessings mean so much to me at this special time. How neat to read letters from my mom, grandma, and friends! I hope I can likewise be an encouragement to my friends and family in the future who will become mommies and will also travel down this road with many questions, anticipation, and excitement. Rachel, thank you for your thoughtfulness...what a great idea! I will treasure this sweet gift and will add to it in the months to come. I will also enjoy reading through it during the tough times and being reminded of all those who are "cheering me on"!

Christmas 2008

The past three weeks have been so enjoyable as we have spent the holidays with our family and friends! The first week of our "vacation", we enjoyed having Jon's brother, Jason,his wife Jenny, and their daughter, Sienna, here with us. We had lots of fun sharing meals together and playing the Wii! We also got to know Dora...Sienna's best friend. The second week, we traveled to spend time with my family. We got to spend the night with my grandparents and enjoy Christmas with them. We also got to go to my grandma's house the day after Christmas and see all my aunts, uncles, and cousins. We only get to see one another on holidays so we always look forward to our time with them. The majority of the time was spent at my parents home. My mom is recovering from foot surgery and we are so thankful for her strong recovery. My sister, Kerri, and her husband, Derek, also got to stay for the week! We LOVED playing games, laughing, watching Christmas movies, eating YUMMY food, and just being together. We were blessed to receive several nice gifts from my parents and grandparents. Ansley also got a few gifts...a Christmas tree for her room next year complete with vintage baby Christmas ornaments I had been wanting! Also, Aunt Kerri and Uncle Derek gave her a gorgeous smocked Christmas dress and matching hair bow. She is so loved already. Mom, Dad, Kerri and Derek....we loved being with ya'll and treasure our trips to see you. The third week of our vacation has been spent with Rachel (Jon's sister), Nathan, and Noah before they leave to head back to Jordan. We have treasured our times with you all since you have been here. We will miss you lots! On New Years Eve, we went over to Richard and Leslie's home and enjoyed an evening of fellowship and reflection of the year (2008). We also each took some personal time to write our goals and dreams for this new year! Happy 2009!