The Thomason Travelogue

Top 10 of 2011

2012-01-15T18:12:00.000-06:00

I'm a little late, but chalk it up to work, and silly IPhoto!

It was hard to pick my top 10 favorite pictures from this year, but I've at least tried to categorize them into related themes. So, in no particular order, here we go!

1. Trips home to see family. I was blessed to be able to fly home 2 or 3 times in 2011. I got to go skiing, see my brother off on his mission, and welcome a new nephew, and most importantly, spend time with my family.

2. Kansas City trips. We went to the Nelson-Atkins Museum, which was phenomenal and FREE!!! The birdie is a Kansas City icon. We spent an afternoon there, and hit up Oklahoma Joe's. We also saw the WWI museum this year, and stayed overnight near Liberty on our way out to Brazil. We saw some of the flooding that happened at the beginning of the summer from all of the snow the mountains had (it had to travel a long way, no mountains here!) I always enjoy our little excursions to KC. We also had the opportunity to see the new stake center and our NEW TEMPLE!!

3. We celebrated our 5th anniversary. It's hard to believe that 2012 will be our SIXTH anniversary! It has gone by so fast, and been so fun. We've moved a lot, traveled a lot, and we are still learning a TON about each other :)

4. We survived the great tornado scare of May 2011. I was cowering in the closet, Todd was cooking dinner. He handles near-disaster much better than I :) In all seriousness, this was the same storm system that created those terrible tornadoes in Reading and Joplin. We were lucky that the funnel cloud passed us over and only left us with (LOTS of) hail damage.

5. I taught summer school for the first time. It was so fun...I taught fourth grade. It was for a half day, and down below are my lovely 7 students :) I loved the small class size, the field trips, and the kids were all really well-behaved, which was a welcome change from what I was used to :)

5. BRAZIL! Of course, that made the list. I loved being in the temple twice a week, doing FHE with the senior missionaries, meeting the wonderful members of the Church there, and seeing the MTC.

6. Starting a new school year! The beginning of the school year is one part fun, one part nerve-wracking. So far, this year has turned out to be equally, if not more so, challenging. However, my sweet students are REALLY sweet, and I feel needed. Oh, to have the patience of a saint though. I need all I can get with this bunch!

7. Huff N Puff Balloon Rally. We almost didn't go, since getting up early on a Saturday morning is not really my thing, but we are so glad we went! We got to see them set up, take off, land, and try to hit a target. It was a great morning!

8. I ran another 5K. I am such a slow runner, but it felt so good to run for a cause (Race Against Breast Cancer). Our school had a team. I was one of the few runners from our school, and I beat my time (my veryyyy slow time). So, that felt really good...it was a beautiful day!

9. Seeing Sis. Dalton. What a fun and spiritual night. Even the drive there with Shannon and Kristen was so much fun. Sis. Dalton's message was great, and we felt like we were meeting a Mormon rockstar! I guess I can lump in my calling with this...I am still enjoying being in Young Women's...I am trying to grow as a teacher of the youth, and they are fun to be around!

10. Todd's graduation....proud wife moment! His family came out, so it was fun to show them around our life here in Topeka. And it was awesome to see Todd walk and get hooded (ignoring the fact that they didn't announce his MBA OR his Pro Bono Honors OR his certificate!

2011 was a great year, and they just keep on getting better!

Top 10 Songs of 2011

2011-12-29T15:31:00.000-06:00

If you didn't know already, I love music. I like all kinds, although I tend to stick to radio-friendly music, whether that be pop or rock or some R&B or whatever else. I always like to look back and see my most-played songs in Itunes, so without further adeiu, here are my Top 10 Most Played Songs of 2011:

1. Moth's Wings by Passion Pit

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=niuU4JitGlg

2. Sweet Disposition by The Temper Trap

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4C8e7nNLZNs&ob=av3n

3. Every Teardrop is a Waterfall by Coldplay

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyMhvkC3A84&ob=av3e

4. Up in Flames by Coldplay

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kO4WNTKvtr4

5. Somewhere With You by Kenny Chesney

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n56hFE9Aquc&ob=av2n

6. Rolling in the Deep by Adele

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYEDA3JcQqw&ob=av3e

7. Without You by David Guetta and Usher

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUe8uoKdHao&ob=av2e

8. The Cave by Mumford and Sons

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KkUeRPjc-Y

9. Letters from the Sky by Civil Twilight

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Wa7dFR09vU&ob=av2e

10. Paradise by Coldplay (I seriously LOVE this video!)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1G4isv_Fylg

Here are the Top 5 songs, period, on my Itunes playlist:

1. The Planets Bend Between Us, Snow Patrol
2. Breakeven, The Script
3. Set the Fire to the Third Bar, Snow Patrol
4. Whataya Want From Me, Adam Lambert (haha)
5. Your Ex-Lover is Dead, Stars

Christmas 2011

2011-12-27T13:44:00.000-06:00

Our past two Christmases have been pretty low-key, and for the most part, we have liked it. This year was a little more difficult for me because I knew Todd would have to spend a lot of his time finishing up clinic things, and starting his preparation for the bar.

Fortunately, we were able to have a great Christmas Eve and Christmas together, and even though it's not as much time as I would like, since I'm home this week, I still see him a bit more than I normally would.

Here is our baby Christmas tree all decked out. I love that most of the ornaments have some kind of special significance. That's what I want our Christmas tree to always be like, big or small, and it's so fun to put up the tree and think about different experiences or people who have made or bought ornaments for us.

Christmas presents this year turned out to have a kitchen theme! When we got married, we only brought with us things that could move 3000 miles across the US, from Delaware to California. Needless to say, most of our kitchen things have been a modge podge of small things we've picked up along the way.

We added to our kitchen repertoire this year: a juicer, stainless steel pots and pans (WITH LIDS! YAY!), nesting bowls, liquid measuring cups, a digital thermometer, organization shelving, strainers, etc. I married a wonderful man who bought all kinds of things we needed, but hadn't bought before. Or maybe this is all a big hint :) We shall see :)

We also ended up with some books, clothes, and candy. It was a really great day, followed by church. It was really nice to have Christmas on a Sunday. Our ward has a really fabulous ward choir, and they did a great job. Also, a returned missionary came home from Brazil, so Todd got to hear some Portuguese again :)

Here is our Christmas decor.

One of the fun parts about Christmas Eve and Christmas Day was Skyping with our families. Seriously, I love technology! Here is Ari showing off his books he got from Uncle Todd and Aunt Megan. We also got to see baby Deklyn, who is healthy, strong, and sooooo cute!

Here is Ari holding up a my first softie--a little monster that I made.

We had a great conversation with my brother Ian, who is on his mission in Huntsville, UT right now. He seems really happy, and very busy! Missions sure have changed a lot...as evidenced by our Skype session! Also, we found it hilarious that Ian's digs our better than ours...he and his companion have their own bathrooms as well as a washer and dryer :) I don't think he ever wants to leave Huntsville!

Again, it was a really wonderful day. We are so thankful for our many blessings, including that of wonderful families, and our testimonies of our Savior Jesus Christ. I am so grateful for the gift of the gospel in my life and the reminder it gives me to be better. Many churches want you to "come as you are." I'm grateful for a church that reminds me I can be better and do better and serve more...so now it's time to get onto those resolutions!

Doctor Thomason!!!

2011-12-27T13:24:00.000-06:00

Haha...so I guess technically Todd isn't a DOCTOR, but he now has a juris doctorate AND an MBA. I made him a cute sign to welcome him home the day of his graduation.

That afternoon, we went with Todd's parents to take some pictures of him and us around the school. Todd has spent a lot of time here the past three years...I'm sure he won't forget it, but we documented it for posterity anyway :)

We also headed over to the business school. I had never been over there in all the time that Todd has been getting his MBA, so that was fun :)

Friday was graduation night, and it was nice to have Todd's family there, as well as several LDS families who also had students graduating. I lost my voice due to a cold, so I couldn't cheer too loudly, but I was SO PROUD!!! They forgot to announce that Todd had received his JD AND an MBA, plus he had 100 hours Pro Bono honors, but I'll record it here :) He looked so funny (okay, and cute!) in his robe and tam, but it was awesome to see it all get put together. When they called his name, his professor giving him his hood was his professor he did research for, and she gave him a hug, which was really sweet. No playing favorites there :)

We have been fortunate to have such good friends here in Topeka. We were able to say congrats and goodbye to several of the grads that are moving on. Here is Todd with his friend Sean Bartholick.

You know who this girl is.

Todd and the proud parents :)

Todd with his friend Peter Klc.

There was a reception afterwards where we got to hear Todd's praises sung some more. I'm sure he was embarrassed by all of the attention. It was such a great night, and again, I am so proud of Todd!

Thanksgiving Pics

2011-12-05T19:31:00.000-06:00

(do you see my creepy eyes in the picture above. Yep, IPhoto gone wrong...and I couldn't get it to go back to my creepy red eyes. Creepy black eyes it is!)

A Month

2011-12-04T10:02:00.000-06:00

It's been nearly a month since I last posted, and like I told Todd yesterday, time is flying! It's hard to believe he graduates in less than two weeks, that Thanksgiving is already over, and that Christmas will be here in 3 weeks. We are hearing rumors swirling that our temple in Kansas City will have its dedication sometime in March, so we are getting really excited about that here!

November was a really busy and fun month. The first weekend, I went with about 16 other girls from our ward and the JRC to Time Out for Women. I just went to the Saturday sessions, but the speakers were fun, and our music was provided by Jericho Road. The overall message I found myself leaving with was that of wanting to serve others, to spend the time and resources I have helping others who have less than myself. I really remembered the love I have for the other countries I've visited, and I want to go back to them and do something for others someday. I think this will have to be a lifelong goal, as we're not in the position to take a lot of time and resources to do this now, but I hope Heavenly Father will bless us with those opportunities somewhere along the way.

Below is a picture of Jericho Road. My pictures didn't come out great, but I had a great time!

The following weekend, I traveled back East to see my family. Deklyn, my new nephew, made an early appearance, so we spent a lot of time at the hospital going in to see him, and supporting Jess and Joey while they were there. Every day, he got stronger, and he's now home, and we are so grateful.

I spent a lot of time being Auntie Megan, which I love. Ari is at an awesome age where he is talking a lot. He is a bright, happy kid and so fun to be around. We learned Spanish, played Mr. Potato Head, visited baby brother, and took lots of pictures!

One day, we took a trip out to the local reservoir. I love the rolling mountains of Pennyslvania, and it was nice to take a drive like we would when I was little. We packed up the car, and did just a little bit of hiking (the perfect amount, haha). They were beginning to set up their Christmas lights, and it was a fun day.

After a very long and arduous return home--which came after a delayed/cancelled flight, a next day flight that was also delayed, a missed connection, and an 8-hour long stay in Cleveland's airport with a new-found traveling buddy, life started right back up again. I had a few days before Thanksgiving break, which was wonderful!

I slept in, spent time with Todd, ate dinner with some great friends here, and did some online shopping :) I've decided I just don't like the "trample or be trampled" mentality of shoppers in America, and I really don't need anything bad enough to stay up late or get up early and deal with the crazy. Todd and I instead went to a local Brazilian restaurant and got some very traditional Brazilian food, and Todd got to practice LOTS of his portuguese, so that was really neat. We hit the local bakery of one of my teaching teammates, and headed to Best Buy so Todd could get one of his Christmas presents :) Saturday and Sunday were spent relaxing and eating and eating some more...overall, it was a really great break!

This past weekend, we were both pretty worn out. Todd is in "finals mode" which means he has been at school late AND early, trying to finish up presentations and papers, and wrapping up his law school experience. We have been testing our little thirds to death at school, and frankly I am sick and worn out with it all. We had a 3L party last night, and it was good to see all of our law student friends in one place before we all start to move our different directions. The question that always comes up is "What's next?" Our answer is still, "Don't know, but we'll be here in Kansas figuring it out!"

So there's the update. Once I free my camera from its confines in my desk at school, I will hopefully be able to add some Thanksgiving pictures, and then....graduation pictures!

I'm Behind

2011-11-09T17:52:00.000-06:00

on my thankfulness, and it will probably get worse cuz I'm going OUTTA TOWN!

Yes, instead of hosting a baby shower for my sister, I will be MEETING the little guy that came early :)

I am so excited, and hoping that he will be well enough to leave the hospital this weekend.

(Please take care of Todd for me...just kidding, he loves when I am gone so he can watch his documentaries without me complaining about how boring they are!)

School Shots

2011-11-06T19:13:00.000-06:00

We had fall fest a few weeks, and we teachers went out and participated....which was followed by Halloween on a Monday. What a long week!

Day 6

2011-11-06T18:44:00.000-06:00

I'm grateful for my calling in Young Women

crockpot dinners

and Sundays with Todd!

chillin at Lake Shawnee on a beautiful fall Sunday a few weeks ago.

Day 5

2011-11-06T18:39:00.000-06:00

I'm grateful for fun girls to hang

out with at Time Out for Women in Kansas City!

Day 4

2011-11-06T18:37:00.000-06:00

I'm grateful to live close to a brand-new temple!

(On a side note...Todd and I attended a JRC meeting at the new stake center right next door, which hadn't even been dedicated yet. They told us they were NOT serving red punch that night!)

Day 3

2011-11-03T18:59:00.001-05:00

I'm grateful for Theraflu :)

Day 2

2011-11-02T19:24:00.000-05:00

I'm grateful for my husband. DUH!!! (Yes, one of my students says this, and she doesn't mean to be funny when she says it, but it cracks me up inside every time. So I'm channeling her when I type this)

Todd has had to put up with some major mood swings in the last few months as I figure how to deal with the awesome amount of stress I feel at work some days, I mean, in addition to the normal female mood swings.

He works hard, he works two jobs, he goes to school, he's doing clinic, he's studying for the bar...all at once. And he makes time to go see plays, and feed fish, and watch movies on the couch, and do the dishes, and take out the trash, etc. etc.

See?? Pretty much awesome. I totally love him. And I'm grateful for him EVERY DAY.

30 days of thankful

2011-11-01T18:29:00.000-05:00

I feel like I am normally really thankful...I have a lot to be grateful for, and I don't want other people and especially Heavenly Father to feel like I'm not grateful. But I saw a friend doing this on facebook, and thought I would try to document the days thanks each day of the month for November.

So, here we go! (where do I even START???)

Nov. 1: I am so grateful for relax time after work. I'm not really someone who handles going from work, to another activity, to chores, errands, errands, busy busy...I NEED that quiet, "do nothing" time after work. And I get it. And it's awesome. Life only gets busier, so I'm so thankful for the time I have now!

Ew

2011-11-01T18:12:00.000-05:00

I would like to point out the fact..

2011-10-29T14:08:00.002-05:00

....that Todd graduates in ONE AND A HALF MONTHS!

Not that I'm counting down or anything :)

RABC run

2011-10-29T14:03:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago, a bunch of people from the school I work at participated in the Race Against Breast Cancer in Topeka. The best thing about my job is the people I work with, and there are lots of fun new people there this year! Anyway, about 2000 people participated in this race, with about 700 runners. I beat my time from last year--which is so slow I don't want to admit it!--so I was still pretty proud of myself. It was fun to watch our other team members finish the race, and it was a beautiful day!

500th Post!

2011-10-12T21:09:00.000-05:00

I wish I had something fun for this 500th post, but alas, nothing too exciting here.

I just heard from Ian in the MTC. His main request was to please write letters so he could get real mail on days of the week other than his P-day :) Oh, and he asked my mom for flipflops :) Cute!

School is kicking my tail. I've had two students this year leave already, and I've gained one. We have a brand new reading curriculum, and the regular ole fun behaviors that I had to deal with, x2. The mother that came in the other day to pick up her new student was showing so much cleavage, I dropped my normal greeting of saying hi and shaking hands because I was terrified that a kid was going to say something awkward, and I was so distracted. People, when you come to school to pick up your kid, COVER UP!! Parent Teacher Conferences are coming up, and I am seriously nervous!

Todd and I are pretty busy this month. He is finishing up his bar application, which takes a ton of time, on top of all of his other school work, clinic, and regular work. Plus, I make him hang out with me every once in a while. We bought dinner theater tickets for Halloween weekend, so we are excited for that! Washburn's homecoming parade is coming up, as well as the ward and JRC Halloween activities. We are having the missionaries over for dinner Friday night, and I am heading to a YW leadership meeting tomorrow night conducted by Sister Dalton...she's a big fish swimming in a small pond!

So looking back at my first few posts EVA, I posted about politics and my sister's wedding :) Nowadays, I try NOT to post about politics, and my sister has a 3 year old and one on the way! Time sure flies!

500 posts, narrowed down to a few pictures through the last 4 years!

Here's to another 500!

Grrr...

2011-10-07T18:10:00.001-05:00

Sometimes when I find out yet another person is pregnant, and regardless of whether I know them or not, inside I think,

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!

And then I am fine and I can go on with my life.

I Have a Blog?

2011-09-29T19:17:00.000-05:00

Oh, yeah, I guess I do! Well, I guess I have a few, but I haven't updated my teaching one in a while. Believe, right now the last thing I want to do when I get home from work is BLOG about work. I'm thinking things will be better by December.

So, I still haven't gotten my blogging urges back, but here's a few pictures to tide you over until next time. Courtesy of my cute family :)

(This guy above leaves for his mission in a WEEK!)

Thankful

2011-09-06T20:35:00.000-05:00

I normally like to reserve these posts for my private journal, but maybe someone else would benefit from these thoughts as well, so here they are.

The last few weeks have been hard. I think some of it is the normal beginning of the year exhaustion, but I have a very difficult class, and sometimes I have felt like it was intentionally stacked because I can "handle it." While that may sound like a compliment to some people, for me it has been very frustrating.

At this point, though, things are starting to get better. I'm grateful for a priesthood blessing from Todd, as it was a reminder to keep perspective, and remember my priorities. Work is exhausting and consuming, but I have other more important duties like reading my scriptures, serving in my calling with the YW, and trying to be a good wife to a wonderful man.

Heavenly Father has really blessed me this past week. I see a light at the end of the tunnel. I am still exhausted and sometimes frustrated, but I've also feel like I've been given more patience. I have a "happy" song I play in the mornings, and I remind myself throughout the day what I have to look forward to when I come home. A quiet house, a loving husband, dinners with friends, or a night of TV or reading or sewing or relaxing. I'm really lucky that way.

I feel like the theme of this past year has been PERSPECTIVE. That can be interpreted however you want, but keeping a perspective has been my lifesaver. This too shall pass, and what is really important? That's how I've tried to remember perspective.

I know that I may wake up tomorrow and have a difficult day or be tired, or feel rushed all day, as I often do as a teacher. But I also know my Heavenly Father loves me, and that work will end around 4:30 or 5, and I can go home and remember my blessings. I'm also trying to recognize blessings during my workday. For example, today they actually sat quietly and a table at a time packed up while I read The BFG. I've NEVER had a class do that...and frankly, it's shocking THIS class can do it. So small blessings indeed.

So yes, I may be "working for the weekend" but I hope that I am growing in the process and remembering the things that are really important.

( I love this guy. He is a workhorse, AND he keeps me from going completely insane. What more could you ask for?)

Giant Pickles

2011-09-04T20:26:00.001-05:00

Todd I have been to the Farmer's Market a couple of weekends since we have been back. We still haven't been able to find the ever-elusive fried Twinkies, but we do enjoy fresh veggies and homemade goodies.

On this particular trip, we got this watermelon that I decided looks more like a giant pickle or cucumber or zucchini. We had to take picture with it, including one of me swinging it like a giant baseball bat. Because you know, we are corny like that :)

POSTEDIT: After I hit the publish post button, google gave me an ad for "Dill Pickle Recipes." It's so weird and funny how their ad marketing works :)

And What a 2 Weeks It's Been!

2011-08-30T20:59:00.000-05:00

Todd update:

Todd started his FINAL SEMESTER!! I am so excited, but he has a lot to do and is VERY busy. He took on clinic this semester, in addition to his TWO jobs and business classes, but he is getting it all done! I am so proud of him and I really appreciate all the help he gives around the house and to me :)

I am already anticipating his graduation day :) I know that is only half the battle to the bar and a job, but it will be nice to get that piece out of the way!

Megan update:

I have been going back and forth with liking my job and wanting to quit my job. But mostly quitting :) This year has been very difficult already and shows no signs of getting easier. Difficult students, new curriculum, tired teacher=an unfun combo. I am sticking it out this year in hopes that something better will come up in the next year. I've decided this clientele is not want I want to work with my entire career... I love the kids but I put out behavioral fires all day and it's wearing me down quickly. I don't feel like I can teach to my potential. I'm trying to keep a perspective that this stage will not last forever, and I'm trying to be as optimistic as I can be. I'm so grateful for nights at home!

I am considering just being a professional student, sounds good to me, minus the student loans!

In other family news, Ian got his mission call to Ogden, Utah and will be leaving Oct. 5th. That's really soon so they are scrambling to get everything done in time. I've got a trip scheduled that also coincides with my dad's birthday. Jess' baby shower will also be in the next few months...busy, busy! My parents and siblings survived an earthquake and a hurricane all in the one week, with only power lost and minimal impact. We had fun skyping with our niece McKenzie on her birthday, and watching her jump on her trampoline was so cute :)

I am still enjoying being in Young Women's. It is so nice to have the chance to be with the girls, and I love the women I work with. It's one of the highlights of my verrrrrrry long weeks!

Our Family updates:

We are in the stage where everyone wants to know what we are doing, where we are applying for jobs, where Todd is taking the bar, etc etc etc. I wish I had a GREAT answer, but the real answer is "We don't know!" We are trusting Heavenly Father to guide us and plugging along as we go. I know it will work out! We have so many changes coming in the next six months, so we are taking each thing as it comes.

Meanwhile, the dishes may be undone, the floors unvacuumed as we frantically try to get our work and school things done. We both come home late (Todd later), and really enjoy just relaxing when we get to see each other.

We are running the Race Against Breast Cancer race in October, and are heading to a local Lego exhibit this weekend hopefully. We have some ward and JRC socials coming up and are looking forward to seeing everyone there. I start to tear up when I think about the possibility of leaving Topeka because we have had such a great experience here. Hopefully we won't have to leave, but we know it's a possibility. Topeka is home now, and we love it, good and bad!

So there is the very long-winded update. We love you all!

What I've Been Up To

2011-08-14T17:08:00.002-05:00

I haven't been blogging on THIS blog because I've been doing THIS on THIS blog!

New Dress

2011-08-14T16:42:00.000-05:00

I had some jersey knit material that I didn't know what to do with. I had attempted to make a skirt with it and failed miserably so I didn't really want to go through all the rigamarole again...working with knits is hard! But I saw a tutorial on the internet that looked REALLY EASY, and like it would use up a ton of the fabric, so I decided to try it this afternoon. I have been missing sewing and needed something to help me get back into the swing of things. I'm hoping that sewing will be a good outlet to help me relax and take a break from thinking about work.

I think it turned out pretty good! Basically, you take a giant sheet of the knit fabric, sew it up on three sides, make a hole for the neck, and a hole for the arms, add a cute bow or belt, and you're done!

I do have to go back and resew a small hole I missed in the first go round, but I like it, and I love the to-the-floor maxi dresses that are "in" right now. Another thing I would change is that I wouldn't have cut the slit in the back of the dress (you can see in the last picture). It isn't too low, but it's pretty close. Beginner mistake!

Hopefully Todd won't think I look like I'm wearing a giant sheet. You can't really beat the comfort of this dress :)

(oh, and excuse the background. There is this quote I saw on Pinterest, "Please excuse the mess. WE LIVE HERE!" So excuse our mess, we live here, in its 500 square foot glory!)

Countdown

2011-08-03T16:38:00.002-05:00

We only have two days left in Brazil. TWO!! Where did the time go?

Tomorrow we'll spend wrapping up loose ends: taking pictures, cleaning, packing, one last minute quick trip to Embu.

SAD!!!

Missionary Love

2011-08-02T15:41:00.000-05:00

Todd is out with the missionaries right now, and that reminded me of something that happened last night.

We were coming home from family home evening with the senior missionaries, and I spotted the young missionaries across the street. Just as I had said, "Hey, isn't that Elder Wilkinson?" Elder W SPRINTED across the street yelling, "I THOUGHT YOU HAD LEFT!" He grabbed Todd in a giant bear hug, swinging him around and saying, "I thought you had left, I'm so glad you are still here!" It was so cute and hilarious at the same time.

The senior missionaries were funny, at first they were confused as to why Todd was getting attacked by a random, loud stranger on the street (it was dark). They had a good chuckle when they realized Todd was just getting a hug. The missionaries love Todd. We are going to try to head by the mission home this week to get a picture of the two elders.

Oh, and on another note, here is a picture I snapped last night of my very helpful husband helping dry dishes after FHE. Sister Call (in the middle, she is our neighbor) gave Todd her husband's apron to help out. He looks good in an apron (cue his family to make comments about it!)

CTM Visit

2011-07-31T17:47:00.000-05:00

Today Todd and I were able to travel with the senior missionaries to the CTM (that's the MTC for you Americans, and the "Missionary Training Center" for you non-Mormons!) In our church, when you are 19 years old, you can choose to serve a 2-year mission for our Church. Young men are strongly encouraged, but never forced to go. It's simply AMAZING to be in a building full of young men who have put their lives on hold to serve the Lord. Many of them are Americans, although there are a lot of Brazilian missionaries as well. Many of them have left families, school, and the comforts of home. Serving a mission is absolutely not an easy choice, and not an easy thing to do sometimes, but these boys are down here willingly, strengthening their testimonies, and learning how to humbly share what they know with others.

We went to the district's sacrament meeting, and then I went to Relief Society with the ladies, while the guys went to Priesthood meeting. The third hour the districts meet together, and Todd and I ended up in a room with 10 boys about to leave this week for their areas. They bore simple testimonies of the things they knew, and they talked about their transformations in the last 9 weeks at the CTM. They will continue to transform as they head into the field. I was as proud of them as a little mother hen, and I hope their mothers and fathers and siblings are proud of the choices they have made.

We learned lots of fun things about how the CTM works. The Brazilian missionaries only spend 3 weeks there, because they don't have to learn Portuguese. The American missionaries stay for 9 weeks. They spend a large part of the day learning from Preach My Gospel or in language study. I've gotten to know the faces of several of the sister missionaries there as well. There are not as many of them as Elders, and they normally only serve for 18 months, but they get the same training. The CTM is right in the middle of the typical Brazilian neighborhood, and they send them out onto the street to practice talking to people and to use their Portuguese. Many of them attempt to say their prayers in Portuguese (sometimes switching to English when their vocabulary fails them), but they all sing enthusiastically in Portuguese. They have to prepare 4 5-minute talks, because any given Sunday, they may be randomly picked on to get up and talk during Sacrament meeting! Branches are only about 20 missionaries large, and so they have to speak often. There is a lot of changeover in the branches, and missionaries are always coming and going!

We also got to eat in the cafeteria and enjoy the food. The senior missionary couples told us that the American missionaries generally like the food, and work so hard that they don't have time to think it's weird (it's not really that weird, but you can find odd dishes in rural areas!) because they are so hungry (and most of them are boys, c'mon, most boys will eat anything when they are hungry!)

Again, it was such a testimony builder for me to see all these young kids working hard and learning to teach the gospel. I don't think I could ever do it, but it is missionary work that brings good people to know more about Christ. I am so grateful they are willing to do it, and am VERY EXCITED to have a brother preparing to serve...I saw him in every young man I observed at the MTC and I hope he finds his experience as rewarding as these young men and women already are.

What a great way to spend a Sunday!

Guaruja

2011-07-31T17:25:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, the Woffindens drove us and the Wilkinsons down to Guaruja. It's a small port town on the coast of Sao Paulo State. As you can see from the picture, it was a pretty overcast day, but after our two-hour drive, the weather cleared just enough for the temperature to be really perfect.

We spent some time just walking along the beach and observing the high rises along the coast and the other beach goers. We sat for a while on the beach under an umbrella and talked while we enjoyed some batatas fritas (french fries) and frango passanheiros (probably butchered that spelling, but its just mini fried chicken). It was fun to watch all the vendors come by, hawking things like fried cheese, peanuts, beach balls, DVD's, and earrings.

We went in search for a clean bathroom, which we only found after our second attempt. The first bathroom we found had no light, no toilet seat, and just a small amount of toilet paper left....no bueno! Luckily, we found a very clean bathroom. When we came back, it had started to rain a bit, so we waited for our ride under the hut :)

We drove down the beach a bit to the fishing beach. You can see all of the little boats behind us getting their catch for the day :)

This little old boat was sitting on the shore. A few minutes later a guy carted it out to the shoreline, pushed it in, and jumped in. He took his boat out to a larger boat, and anchored the small boat. It seems like most of the fishermen did it this way because there wasn't much of a dock :) They just had two boats, one to get to the larger boat, and one to fish from!

Here you can see the fishing boats all lined up, with clouds and forested mountains in the background. On our way home, we got to ride through the green forests and through a LOT of tunnels cutting through mountains. Brazil has it all!

As you would expect anywhere in Brazil, there was a game of soccer going on the beach. As the tide came in, their playing field got smaller and smaller :)

After the fishing beach, we headed to get dinner. We stopped at this busy, but really nice restaurant that had some of its wares on display! I like squid, but not like this! We ended getting a delicious salmon, and also sampled some bread and cheeses. Brazilian cheese is really quite good, but it's expensive (like everything here!) It was fun to look out onto the beach from the restaurant and smell the fresh ocean air!

This was the restaurant. It was a perfect, fun day and we are so grateful for our new friends who are willing to give us rides, advice, and a good time! It will probably be the only time this year I am near the beach, and I miss it a lot in Kansas. So I got to dip my toes in and walk on the sand and hear the relaxing crash of the waves, and that will tide me over for a while.

Dinner Time!

2011-07-31T17:04:00.000-05:00

Somebody please tell me why they don't have pasta bars in the US!! Maybe they do, and I just don't know about that. Thursday night, we were invited along with some of the other missionaries to go to dinner at the club house of the Woffindens. Bro. Woffinden was who Todd got into contact with in order to come down to Brazil. They are seated next to us on the left.

The first couple on the right is the Wilkinsons. Elder Wilkinson also works in the church's legal office and they have been awesome to show us around and answer our questions. The Hills are next to them. Sis. Hill is my Tuesday temple buddy :) and Brother Hill is one of the local medical advisors. They are going home tomorrow and everyone is really sad to see them go. We can totally see why because they both are just the nicest people. Really, every senior missionary we've met has been so kind!

So here's the pasta bar. You pick your pasta, they warm it up, you pick a sauce, and then what you want to go in it, and they heat it up, mix it all together, and you've got dinner! It was really delicious, and it was a really fun night!

Teatro Municipal

2011-07-28T15:30:00.000-05:00

On Tuesday, Todd and I went downtown again to see a dance show at the Teatro Municipal. I was itching to get inside that building and see a show, and we made it happen. We bought $4R tickets, which are about $1.50, and were told we wouldn't be able to see much, but at that price, I didn't care!

The theatre at night.

We got there early because you just never know with those busses! Plus, Todd wanted to take me to a juice shop that he had been to a couple weeks earlier. It did not disappoint. I wanted coconut and pineapple for a nice little pina colada mix, and our waiter said he had never tried that combo. Oh, what a TRAVESTY! I almost offered him some of mine, it was so good. As you can see in the picture, all the juice comes straight from the fruit. It was really good! They give you these mini pitchers that they combine it all in, and then you pour it into your cup. Todd got some combination of fruits that I can neither pronounce nor identify right now, and he liked his too...although not as much as my pina colada!

We walked around the mall across the street a little bit, and couldn't resist this little cupcake kiosk. We had a nutella cupcake. It was filled with nutella, frosted, and then dipped in hazelnut chocolate! It was SOO GOOD!

One of the advantages of being married to Todd is that he LOVES massages. Now, why is this an advantage? Well, when you walk past a small oriental massage place in the mall, he stops and inquires over prices. Which led us to snag a 15-minute chair massage before the show. It was wonderful (yes, we love massages. We currently have two Groupons for massages that we need to redeem. We are massage JUNKIES!)

We then headed to the theater to check out the inside. There were a lot of people there, and we couldn't use our flash, so the quality isn't great. But hopefully you can get some idea of how beautiful it is inside!

There are five levels in the theater. I think we were on the third. Our seats really weren't bad...totally worth the pittance we paid. We just had to lean forward to look over the balcony, which was no big deal at all. The stage was one of the biggest I've ever seen!

This is a terrible picture of the flamenco dance :) No flash, slightly uncool camera :) We saw lots of ballet, some modern, some tango, and a hilarious mashup of the Flintstones and that motion of the ocean song from Hairspray. Apparently there was a prima ballerina from the US there too..I don't know my ballerinas but the audience went wild after her performance, and it was really good. All of the dances were great, we had a ton of fun!

More Sao Paulo

2011-07-24T18:05:00.000-05:00

In an interesting turn of events, Todd met a member of the church who agreed to take us around Sao Paulo and show us some of the sights. This turned out to be really great because they knew exactly which busses to take, how to get around the centro downtown, and they also took us some places where I am glad we had fellow Brazilians with us :)

We started out at Parque Ibirapuera, sometimes called Sao Paulo's answer to New York's Central Park. It is quite big, but having never been to Central Park, I can't make a comparison :) Below is a statue outside the park of the bandeiros, who settled Sao Paulo. Since climbing on this thing required Todd to give me a leg up (is that the right term?), I considered this picture to be quite the daredevil feat (okay, we weren't breaking any laws or anything :)

As we made our way around the outside edge of the park, we stopped and snapped pictures of a few more statues.

In the area below, there were quite a few groups of people sitting and talking, and kids playing on the playground. This was a fun bench, with a really cool tree in the background. The other advantage of having a tour guide with you is that you have someone to take pictures of the TWO of you, which is nice!

In the background of the picture below, the obelisk represents four of the country's heroes, who are buried there. I'm pretty sure they were bandeiros too. Also, going on in the background is the only field hockey game I've ever seen outside of the US :) (well, outside of Maryland to be quite honest!)

This building was designed by a famous architect in Sao Paulo, Oscar Niemeyer. It's really a theater/auditorium. I guess people there refer to it as "a lingua" (the tongue). You can see why :)

After leaving Parque Ibirapuera, we grabbed a bus and headed back downtown. Also, as a slightly related note, if you have light skin and blue eyes, people tend to stare at you. It's really awkward. One time in Embu, this kid had his mouth stuffed full, and when he saw me his jaw full of food dropped open, and he continued to turn and stare at me as I walked by. I felt like an alien. Like I said, awkward. On the bus, kinda the same thing. I try not to make eye contact!

This is in front of the law school in downtown Sao Paulo (above), and below is a statue in front of the building.

We headed on towards the Prace de Se, which is basically a big square block. There were preachers getting their Saturday preaching in, very enthusiastically, I might add. There were people playing music, and other people selling things, and other crazy people who will just walk up to you and tap you on the shoulder and start saying stuff in drunken Portuguese. But mostly, there are people visiting the church and milling about waiting for busses, or walking with their families.

This is the church in Praca de Se. We didn't take any pictures of the inside, but it is really impressive. Beautiful stained glass and high ceilings and gold-leaf altars.

This slab below points to the other main cities in Brazil. The ones you can kinda see are Rio and Minas Gerais.

Us in front of the statue. Many of these churches have a patron saint, and I THINK theirs was Benedict or Peter?? Not sure, get them all mixed up!

We would our way around more of the downtown historial area. Many of these areas were constructed in the 1500's. Most of it has been restored, although some of it is original.

We were hungry, so we headed back to the Mercado for some grub. The last time we were there, we were too full to get their "famous" sandwich, so we got it today. It is basically a glorified baloney sandwich, with lots of yummy gooey cheese. However, the meat is better than baloney, that's for sure. It was greasy and delicious. I got another shrimp pastel (like last time), which was stuffed full with shrimp and cream cheese...a very yummy heart attack! While in line, we met a lady and her college exchange student who goes to Tulane. It was fun talking to them about Brazil and what she is doing here.

We shot this quick picture in front of another church before we headed over another aqueduct. Our guides told us that a river used to below the bridge, and where the Mercado is, used to be a port where ships pulled in. It was fun to imagine it that way.

These were our tour guides, Irmao Toposky (Irmao means brother, like how we address each other as Brother and Sister at church. But here, Brazilians usually follow Brother or Sister with their FIRST name as opposed to last name like Americans do. So in the temple, I tell the sisters my name is Irma Megan). Oh, and his cousin Paulo. They were really goofy and a lot of fun, and traipsed around with us so I could find my Brazil jersey :)

I just liked the big graffiti man on the side of the building :) There is graffiti EVERYWHERE! Some of it looks like chicken scratch, but a lot of it is quite creative!

Another church. The darker-skinned Brazilians used to be segregated out (I think this was a REALLY long time ago, during slavery). This was one of the churches they used.

All in all, we had a fun but exhausting day. It was nice to see some of the more historical parts, but also see some things that were familiar as well. We are grateful Todd ran into Irmao Toposky and that he volunteered to take us around. I also have to thank my translator Todd!

New Names

2011-07-24T14:28:00.000-05:00

Have we mentioned our names are really hard to pronounce? Todd comes out more like "Todge" or "Todgy." He gets Todgy a lot because there is a chocolate mix (like Nestle) called "Toddy" and the Brazilians think its hilarious that his name is so similar :)

Most female names here don't end with an "n" sound, so my name comes out sounding like Maggie. In fact, in the picture below, I'm holding my key card for the association building. The secretary thought that's what I said when I pronounced my name, so Maggie I am :)

Avenida Paulista

2011-07-24T14:21:00.000-05:00

Welcome to the Thomason's tour of Avenida Paulista :)

This here is where we got off the bus. Last Saturday when we went, we rode one of those double-bus gizmos, where the bus has an accordion style contraption in the middle, making it extra long (are you getting the visual?) Anyway, Todd and I ended up in the accordion and it was very swingy and wobbly...almost makes you carsick! Anyway, it was our first adventure on a bus by ourselves, but we made it! Avenida Paulista is where most of the banks and offices of Sao Paulo are located. It wasn't quite as busy on a Saturday, but there were still a LOT of people there!

We think they're telephone booths look like little pods (and yes, Todd did sanitize after touching the phone!)

This was an old church. It didn't look like it was being used for anything anymore.

The museum of art. It is a famous landmark in Sao Paulo, mostly because of its design. You can kind of see that it "floats." It stands on those red concrete pillars, and you line up to buy tickets underneath. We didn't go through the museum.

This is parque trianon. It's one of the small parks in Sao Paulo, and was quite jungle-like. There were all kinds of...interesting...people there. I won't get into details, but they all looked quite happy :)

A statue of a bandeiro. Bandeiros are all over the history of Sao Paulo.

A building that looks like it houses one of the newspapers of SP.

Looking down the street. A. Paulista is about 6-8 lanes across, so its very busy.

I think this is a bank. We really liked the statues and the landscaping out front.

A sign marking where we are. PHEW! We're still on the right street! We enjoyed a lunch of fries, juice, and a Brazil-style hamburger. It tasted a lot like those bulk hamburgers you get in the frozen section...not great, but not gross either. A big improvement on a Guatemalan hamburger! We also sampled some delicious ice cream.

This is another cool building we saw. It looks like it gets thinner as it gets higher because of the perspective and how tall it is. But if you look closely, the bottom floor has five windows, and every floor after that has the same number of windows (4) that are the same size.

We had heard how this was supposed to be this huge bookstore that was really cool.

It did have a fun seating area where they were playing the movie "Rio." (They are selling Rio all OVER the place here, they love the Brazil love!)

However, maybe because we are Americans and we are used to Barnes and Noble, or because we are used to getting books for cheap at the thrift store or online...either way, we experience quite the sticker shock here. Right now, I can get Pride and Prejudice for free on my Itouch, and you can probably get it for 2-5 bucks in the states. Well, if you want your Jane Austen in Portuguese, you will have to shell out 25 reals, or about $18. That doesn't just apply to translated books either...if you wanted any book, whether it was old or new, originally in Portuguese or not, it seemed like the average price was 20-40 reals. I don't know about you guys, but I don't think I've ever paid the list price for a book, and there were no bargain sections in this store. We were looking forward to getting some books in Portuguese, but we may have to check out Amazon instead. Another reason I'm grateful for America. We did talk to some locals, and they said you can find books easily at used bookstores, you just have to know where they are :)

Anyway, we still had a good day on Avenida Paulista!

Dear Mr. President

2011-07-24T13:55:00.001-05:00

...MISSION president, that is!

Todd's mission president from Curitiba happened to be here in Sao Paulo in our very building. Todd was really excited to see him, and they got to talk and even attend a very fun meeting together :) Well, I don't know how fun the meeting was, but it was nice for Todd to be able to get a picture with President Paulsen :)

Lest You Think We Play All Day!

2011-07-20T17:02:00.000-05:00

I think that some people have gotten the impression that we spend all our time playing. Well, of course, I'm only going to blog about the FUN stuff, but for anyone dying of curiosity, here's a sample schedule for our work week. Right now, Todd is writing a position paper, and I'm compiling data on about 25-30 ambassadors to Brazil.

Monday: We both work 8-6, and take an hour between 12 and 1 for lunch. At 6, we got to FHE with the senior missionaries until about 8:30.

Tuesday: We go to the temple and do a session at 8 in English. It's with one of the branches of the MTC, so there are a lot of missionaries around. I love it! After our session, Todd goes over to work, and I stay and volunteer in the laundry until 12. I've done a lot of folding! We eat from 12-1 at the temple cafeteria usually, and then we both head back to work until 5.

Wednesday: This day is similar to Tuesday, except I go to the temple by myself and Todd goes to work. On Wednesday nights, Todd works with the missionaries from 5-9, and I come home and blog :)

Thursday: Usually I call this day my "summer break" day and I'll sleep in :) Todd is a sweetie and leaves me alone and gets up and goes to work :) Sometimes I'll go in, but usually I lay around and read or clean something. Thursday nights are free for us and its AWESOME!

Friday: Same as Thursday. Our neighbors let us borrow movies from them, so sometimes Friday is our movie night.

Saturday: This is our "go and explore" day. Most of our picture are just from Saturdays!

Sunday: Church is from 9:30-12:30. We almost always end up talking to someone til 1. The past two Sundays, someone has invited us over for lunch right afterwards, and we've been there til 3:30 or 4. Then Sunday evening we rest and relax and Skype our families. I love Sundays!

So there it is. Todd spends a bulk of his week working, and I split my time between the apartment, the temple, and the association building (where we work).

And here are some pictures of Todd "working" hard :)

More Downtown

2011-07-15T18:06:00.000-05:00

Here we are on Rua 25 de Marco. This street is filled with stores and vendors and is incredibly packed with people. Our missionary friends compared it to the fabric district in LA, multiplied by 10. I've never been to LA, but basically you couldn't walk without touching or being touched by someone else. We were like sardines, everyone looking for bargains. We didn't buy much, but we did find some cheap ties for Todd. It was a pretty crazy street...I would not want to bring kids down that street!

We liked how the policeman was up in this little tower so he could look down upon all of us little ants :)

In front of the Banco de Sao Paulo. There were lots of streets that were closed to traffic. We got approached by this crazy drunk guy that no one could understand. We tried to ask him directions to get him to go away and leave us alone, and after we paid him, he told us to go ask the police officers, they would know :)

Another part of the plaza. This part was less busy, but there were still a lot of people. We saw more homeless people than we see in our part of Sao Paulo, which you would expect in a city this huge. It always makes me feel sad though :(

This statue is of a guy named de Silva. There are a lot of people named de Silva in Brazil :)

We are crossing the aqueduct here. You can see all the busses and cars in the background. I love the palm trees!

This is the freeway that runs underneath the aqueduct we crossed. They say you can get stuck in traffic for hours during rush times. Let's just say that I would NEVER want to drive in SP...they drive like crazies!

In front of the Teatro Municipal. It's still used for ballet and theater, and is a SP landmark.

After this, we walked over and caught our bus. We were lucky to be one of the first ones on, because I ended up getting a seat and we were out of the way of traffic. This turned out to be fortuitous because the.bus.was.packed. I don't think I've ever been on a bus with so many people...we were like chickens in a very crowded coop. I couldn't imagine having to take the bus every day to work or to the store, because a lot of the time you end up standing. However, its a part of the culture there, and it was fun to ride just to see what its like. Todd tells me that it is part of the culture of most cities, but he has to remember that I am not a city girl and I prefer to drive my car where I can listen to my songs and not have someone pressed up right against me as I hold on for dear life to the pole!

Anyway, we had a good time in downtown SP and found a lot to see and do during our day!

Fruits and Veggies

2011-07-15T17:47:00.000-05:00

At the market, the vendors will cut off pieces of fruit for you to try, which we took advantage off. There were lots of new things we got to try, as well as some fruits imported from other countries that we enjoyed as well.

This is a maracuja...it's got this slimy flesh and seeds, and apparently you eat both...that was kinda weird for me, but the pulp did taste good!

If you look at the prices, you'll notice the one above is $25 reals a kilo...which translates into "really expensive." We were shocked...we even found one fruit that was $99 reals a kilo! That will hurt the pocketbook!

We bought a couple of fruits, including Todd's very favorite, the mango! He is cutting them up as we speak (after cleaning them REAL good and cutting off the skin...we don't want any bacterial infections!)

Mercado Municipal

2011-07-15T17:26:00.000-05:00

Our next stop on our tour of downtown was the Mercado Municipal, where we spent a lot of time eating, smelling, and wandering! The market is just what its called--a food market selling all kinds of things from nuts, to fruit and vegetables, to meats and spices. It also has restaurants housed inside where you can eat what are called "pasteis"--fried concoctions that are either sweet or savory.

Here's Todd in front of the market.

Walking through one of the "streets." There are several rows in this indoor market.

This is where we bought "world-famous" pasteis from a place called the Hocca Bar. You can see them frying up the pasteis in the deep fryer in the back. We bought a shrimp and a cod pasteis, both of them recommended by our travel books :)

They were delicious! We liked the shrimp one the best. We also tried maracuja juice, which is passionfruit juice. It didn't pass my taste test :)

This is one of the various stained glass windows in the building. It's better in person, our pictures don't really do them justice!

It seems that Brazilians also love coconut! I'm eating a cocada, which is just a sweet coconut treat. I've tried several here, and love them all! Todd got himself some papaya sorbet, which was also REALLY GOOD!

One of the best things about this market was the variety. I got a kick out of the animal parts for sale--it was slightly disgusting, yet fascinating all at the same time. Below are some cow legs.

And here, you could buy yourself some fabulous hog legs or pig ears! Very delicious! Hehe, just kidding...don't know if I could ever eat this!

And here is a whole pig for your dining pleasure!

BANESPA building-July 14

2011-07-15T17:13:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, another senior missionary couple invited us to go downtown with them so that we could see the view from the tallest building in SP. It's only open during the week so we hemmed and hawed and weren't sure if we could miss a day of work...haha, just kidding. We jumped at the opportunity to go downtown, and so we embarked on our adventure. We used the bus system here, which is pretty efficient, but VERY busy. You can imagine trying to transport a percentage of a city that has 20 million people. There are lots of busses, and they are full! Anyway, more on that later! We got off after an interesting drive deeper into the city, and set off past huge buildings, theaters, and banks to the BANESPA building. It used to be a bank, and they built it to echo the Empire State Building in New York. We took an elevator to the 25th floor, and then got on another elevator to the 33rd floor, and climbed up stairs the last two floors. They allow you to be up there for 5 minutes, which was plenty of time to see this:

I thought it was pretty amazing. Getting off the bus was quite overwhelming for me. I have never big in a big city before (well, not one this size...Washington DC felt MUCH smaller!) There were so many people, and then to get to the top of the building and look out over the city was such a neat experience. We are so glad we got to see this view!

The picture below is of the chandelier on the first floor of the building. It was really large and beautiful!

Good Friends are easy to find :)

2011-07-13T19:40:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends,

You are fabulous. I love reading your blogs, reading your comments, reading your emails, and your facebook posts! Yes, I am reading them, even if I don't always comment. I truly have been blessed with family friends, high school friends, BYU friends, Boise friends, single friends, married friends, Mormon friends, non-Mormon friends, work friends, volleyball friends, etc.

Never underestimate the power of a good friend, or the power you have to BE a good friend just by doing the things you do and sharing the things you share :)

Oh, and thanks for reading this little bloggy blog :)

Love,
Megan

I made this on Picnik :)

2011-07-09T17:53:00.001-05:00

On a completely unrelated to Brazil note--Thanks to a simple tutorial on "I am Momma-Hear Me Roar" I made this cute 5x7 printable :) I am loving the current navy and coral color combo!

Sao Paulo--Days 3, 4, and 5

2011-07-07T17:36:00.000-05:00

On Monday, Todd and I headed into the Church's Office to meet Raquel, the legal office's assistant. She is this bubbly, energetic, fun woman who took us around for the first 3 hours of the morning and introduced us to practically everyone in the office building--from the perpetual education fund workers, to the women who process missionary passports in the Brazil Area offices, to the temple housing staff, to the records office that houses one binder for every property the Church owns in Brazil. It was incredibly interesting to meet all of those people and hear what they do for the Church. Many of them speak good English and are so enthusiastic in the work of the Church. It was great!

Todd and I headed back to our apartment for a simple lunch, and got settled into the office in the afternoon. That evening, we went to Family Home Evening with many of the local senior missionaries and it was a RIOT! One couple is in charge of the lesson portion,while another couple does the food, and then they rotate. The Clarks gave a great lesson centering on America (because it was the 4th of July). We really felt the love for America in the room. We played a very fun, and competitive, game of American trivia, and then headed upstairs for hot dogs and potato salad. The missionaries here have continued to be incredibly inviting and friendly. Just as a side note, the locals here call them "casal misionarios" which translates into "married missionaries." They don't really have a nice word like "senior" to use as opposed to "old." :)

Tuesday morning Todd and I went to the temple. The SP temple has sessions in English every Tuesday and Wednesday morning, so we both will be going on Tuesdays and I'll go on Wednesdays too. It's fun to be there with a group of American missionaries attending the Missionary Training Center in Sao Paulo. We also have been trying the local food here, such as cozinhas (okay, I mix up the spelling), which is like a potato batter filled with meat and cheese and fried....yummm! We have also had rice and feijouada (basically a Brazilian mixture of beans), which is good as well.

(these potato things...they are not cozinhas...that's the word for kitchen...I'll figure it out someday!)

(feijouada)

On Wednesday, the Church office had a going away party for a set of Brazilian casal missionaries. One of the American casal missionaries made enchiladas, which were DELISH! What's funny is that we found out Brazilians don't really eat or like Mexican food. However, it's widely known that it's hard to find GOOD Mexican food around. However, we all ate up those enchiladas! Plus, this missionary couple dropped off a pan to us later that day. We are really being so blessed by everyone's kindness!

Today, I stayed home while Todd went to work...apparently I am distracting or something :) I felt guilty for just lying around at home, but then I remembered that is my SUMMER VACATION and that I worked all of June and will go right back to work a couple of days after we get back. So, not as much guilt now :) Tonight, Todd and I walked around and partook of some Brazilian pastry...very yummy!

I think we will be embarking out of Sao Paulo this weekend to travel to Embu, which is known for its arts and crafts fair on the weekends. The missionaries rave about it, and our neighbors, Elder and Sister Call, are kind enough to show us the way!

Stay tuned for more Brazilian fun!

The View From Up Here

2011-07-07T17:16:00.000-05:00

This is the view from our window, looking out at the Sao Paulo temple. Pretty awesome, right?

Our living room.

Our kitchen. Notice our oven, which the senior missionaries refer to as "easy-bake ovens" because they are really small and quite temperamental. We have to plug it in and turn on the gas to use it, then hit the ignition switch a few times to get the gas to come on...once it does, we're good :)

The view from one direction of our apartment during the day...just lots and lots of tall buildings and residential homes, interspersed with small shops.

A little birdie in the tree..the birds here are so much more interesting. There are these green parrots that hang outside the tree that I've tried to get pictures of, but the really loud annoying dog (sorry, dog lovers) upstairs scares them away usually.

Our view in the other direction...the Sao Paulo temple doesn't stand out quite so much during the day!

Brazil-Days 1 and 2

2011-07-04T14:47:00.000-05:00

So begins the Thomason Travelogue: Brazil edition!

Warning: No pictures ahead, just LOTS of text!

Our flight was incredibly long but thankfully smooth. I've never taken an overnight flight before that lasted literally the entire night, and there is not a dosage of Tylenol PM in the world that will aid me in sleeping sitting up. Luckily, there were movies available for 5 in the morning when it was too light outside to go back to sleep. On another happy note, our bags arrived intact and getting a taxi from the airport to our apartments was easy (if not realllly expensive, especially when your life flashes before your eyes near every semi).

We are staying in a Church-owned apartment across the street from the Sao Paulo temple. Sao Paulo is called the "concrete jungle" in many of our travel books, and it's true. We are surrounded by high rises made of concrete, and I would not venture to call it beautiful. What is beautiful is the temple lit up at night, which gives the area a cleaner feel to it. During the day, we jaywalk across a crazy busy road full of cars and "motoboys" which are guys on small motorbikes that beep incessantly to let other cars know that they are whizzing by in between lanes. We are down the street from a mall, two grocery stores, one of them being...WALMART! Yes, Walmart is down the street, and much like the US, it is crazy busy and loud and crowded. Unlike the US, prices in Sao Paulo are expensive, but maybe its just for the things we like :) However, Todd was happy to get his hands on the liquid yogurt they eat here, and I was happy to find Activia :) You know, it's the small things! So far, we've used our credit card for every transaction, thank you Visa!

On Saturday, we arrived, unpacked, took a nap, and then did our shopping. Afterwards, we met one of the senior missionaries here, whose calling is to be the associate legal counsel here in Sao Paulo. He has been a great help to us, knowing how to get around and where to go, and what to do.

(Side plumbing note: You can FLUSH PAPER here! It sounds silly to an American, but if you have traveled to other countries, you may find that flushing paper stops up your toilet, and then you are really in a jam! An embarassing jam at that. So, we know we are much more civilized here when we can flush. On another side plumbing note, the water pressure is terrible...which is a VERY South American thing. In order to get the hottest water, you have to turn the water down. Needless to say, I'm always thankful for the showers when we return to the States! Also, it's cold, and I don't have a blow dryer. Air drying isn't working out so well. I'm gonna have to do something about that!)

On Sunday, we headed to church at 9 am...which felt really early because I was still a little jet lagged and Sao Paulo is two hours ahead of us. On the way there, we met this very nice member who immediately welcomed us, had us sit near him, and introduced us to EVERYONE he saw, who would in turn introduce us to their families. It was really nice, and we met many people who spoke Portuguese and some who spoke English. Of course, the services were in Portuguese. Todd was in heaven, I was exhausted by the third hour from trying to catch bits and pieces that I could understand. However, it did further my resolve to learn some Portuguese while I am here. Oh, and the ward is HUGE. The ward is part of the first stake created in South America, pretty cool, right? It was packed with people, and Relief Society probably had 60+ women, so many they have to meet in the gym because all of the other rooms are too small!

Afterwards, the man, Paulo, who had "rescued" us earlier invited us over to dinner with their family. Many people in the ward live in our apartment complex, as do the 10 senior missionary couples. Paulo lives there too, and we enjoyed a really delicious dinner. Really, we couldn't believe how friendly everyone was (it did remind us of our Topeka ward). We stayed afterwards and talked for a while (Todd had to translate a lot for me), and then headed home for a quiet Sunday evening.

Our next door neighbors are senior missionaries, and our apartments are the only ones on our floor. We have two bedrooms and two bathrooms and a washer and dryer. However, we have to be careful not to run the stove, dryer, microwave, shower and anything else plugged in at the same time :) Honestly, the apartment is better than anything we could have expected!
We are currently in the office the general legal counsel, but I'll write about that later. To come is our tour of the church office building here and future plans.

Ciao!

Blessed

2011-06-25T13:00:00.002-05:00

I've been feeling pretty good recently. Todd and I are in a really good stage of life. There are uncertainties, and difficulties, because that is a part of life. However, I think we both feel like we will look back on our past few years in Kansas and know that we were blessed.

I've had a lot of experiences being married to Todd that I wouldn't give back for the world.

We've done a lot of traveling. We've crossed a lot of bridges!

We've both gone back to get more education. I'm so grateful I got my second degree. It's proven to be essential in this stage of our life, and I enjoy it. Hopefully, Todd can look back on his law school experience and know that it was worth it.

We've always had a full fridge. We've never wanted for necessities, never not been able to pay our tithing or our bills. We've even been able to buy wants (especially if Ben and Jerry's is a want!)

We've been blessed with good families. We were both blessed to have fabulous upbringings, and we continue to have families that care about us. We both grew up in unique parts of the US, and we hope to visit those places again with our own family someday.

We've been blessed to have families that have taught us how to stay positive in the face of trials. Whether it be physical, spiritual, or financial trials, we have an example to follow.

We've been able to spend a lot of time together. I know I harp on Todd sometimes for having to do that yucky thing called studying, but he's been able to set aside plenty of time for us to have experiences that we will always remember (go Broncos!)

In our travels, we've stepped off the beaten path to see some crazy places. Those places have become a vital part of our earthly experience. God created it, we are exploring it!

(Craters of the Moon National Park)

As a girl, I never thought I'd marry someone who would wisk me off to Central and South America :) But I wouldn't trade going there for anything. I learned to really appreciate America for its indoor plumbing, for the fact that as a child I didn't have to sell items on the street to make money for my family, for the education I was able to have. But, I also learned to see the value in other cultures, and explore equally beautiful places as those in America. Oh, and ziplining in Guatemala is DARN COOL!

I can't predict what will happen in the next month, year, 5 years, etc. But I will be forever grateful for the positive experiences I am having now, and the fact that perspective helps me get through hard times, for they will be "but a moment." I'm grateful for an eternal companion who has helped me see the world, and who is my best friend. These experiences wouldn't be nearly as rich without him.

Gringo News

2011-06-24T10:27:00.000-05:00

Todd and I got to talk to our contact in Brazil about final arrangements. We felt really good after the conversation, and a lot of our questions were answered. Here's what we found out:

We will be living in senior missionary housing...woo hoo! In return for living there, we are supposed to volunteer in the Sao Paulo temple twice a week. I think that will be a really neat experience, seeing as I've never volunteered in any temple, ever! I'm a bit nervous about being around others who speak Portuguese but I hope it's okay! The nice thing about this trip, too, is that we will be in ONE place the entire time, aside from traveling. That was the hardest part about Guatemala, moving every week or so.

Our housing, Todd's internship, the temple, and the ward we will be attending are all in the same complex. That means we won't have to take a bus, or walk, or take a taxi to get anywhere. PHEW! Sao Paulo has 20 million people and the thought of trying to navigate the streets with all those people made me gag at times. So that unease is settled!

Todd will be working in the office of the General Counsel for the Church in Brazil. He may get to attend some hearings in the Brazilian Senate while he is there, but mostly he'll be working on projects for the General Counsel.

I'll be volunteering in several possible ways. It could be in the temple, it could be with some of the senior missionaries, it could be in the Perpetual Education office. Apparently, they will be keeping me busy. I'll be grateful for that, as Todd will be doing an 8 to 5 in the OGC.

We are both excited and nervous...I keep getting butterflies thinking about it. In fact, the scariest part for me is the trip there. I HATE customs, both in the US, and in other countries. I always feel like a criminal, and it's worse when you are in another country and the agents have accents and I can't understand them, and it's so awkward! Plus, I'm usually going on no sleep, and this flight is a LOOOOOONG overnight flight. So wish us luck there!

Ciao!

Countdown

2011-06-16T07:06:00.000-05:00

15 more days until we trade in our homeland status

for that of

GRINGO

and our

"hellos" for "obrigados"!

(oh, how I am going to miss American plumbing and real hamburgers. Just sayin'!)

Summer Scorcher

2011-06-09T21:47:00.003-05:00

Contrary to popular belief, we are alive. Life has been good and carefree and filled with FREE TIME in the last few weeks. Fortunately, Todd got sick last week so he was FORCED to stay home and watch movies and sit around and see his wifey, and I took full advantage by coming home after work and watchin' movies too :)

Uh, let's see. We went to Omaha, and to the temple and did two sessions. We have never done that because its a 7 hour round trip and we're lucky to get in one session. However, thanks to Groupon, we had a hotel stay in Omaha, and got to take life a little slower :) The pictures are on facebook, but here's one for the blog to break up my blah blah blahing!

We really enjoyed the zoo and the Imax movie we watched. My favorite part of the zoo was definitely the gorillas, maybe because they are the most human-like :)

We also caught up with a friend of Todds back from our pest control days in Columbus. No regrets about not doing it this summer (except for the money...we'll always miss the money!) However, I am making the big bucks at summer school, so it's all good right? (And can I just say, that teachers do NOT get summers off...many choose to teach summer school, or teach classes, or TAKE classes, or end up moving their classrooms, etc etc...no teacher takes the entire summer off!)

Anyway, we returned from Omaha and I started summer school. I.LOVE.IT. I have 6 cutie students who are smart cookies and do whatever I ask...a girl can get TOTALLY used to that! Actually, it's weird, because we get things done a million times faster...I have to think of things to challenge them, which is a stretch because they are fourth graders, and already know more things than I'm used to my third graders knowing! Anyway, it's been great. I have Fridays off and I get off at 2.

So what else fills my days? Well, let's see, I've been sewing, reading up a storm, finally getting back to the gym, watching movies, spending time getting my classroom ready for next year, etc etc. Todd has been studying his Portuguese and finally getting in some "fun" reading (no, law books do NOT count as fun reading!)

We are also slowly preparing for Brazil. It's coming up fast, and with doing summer school, it feels like it will be here in no time. I am getting more nervous as it approaches. I feel slightly better because we've done Central America, but I'll be back in a country with an unfamiliar language and I'm running out of time to prepare...I know NO Portuguese. My intentions have been to study it some, but the days fill up quickly!

Our passports and visas are are back and ready to go, plane tickets have been bought, and the packing list and pile has been started. We both realize that the first two weeks in a new country are always awkward and uncomfortable (as it is whenever you move someplace new). You would think moving 6 times would lessen this feeling, but it happens every time! However, we know that after the initial few weeks, it'll feel more natural to be in Brazil, and the nice thing will be that for the most part, we'll be staying in the same city.

So there's the Thomason update. It's exciting to be embarking on another new adventure...I think the adventures will probably continue through the next six months as Todd prepares to graduate and we ponder heavily over where life will take us next :)

Tornado Video

2011-05-22T19:37:00.002-05:00

Enjoy!

Tornado Scare

2011-05-22T16:23:00.003-05:00

6:00 pm I message Todd at school and tell him they are expecting baseball-sized hail. He says he's coming home.

6:10 Rain starts

6:20 Hail starts...first its just small hail, then it gets larger and larger and larger...

6:40 By now, the sirens are going off, the weather guys are talking about funnel clouds and possible tornadoes being spotted. The hail is hitting the roof so hard it sounds like it's going to come through the roof any minute. Todd grabs the camera and we can see the funnel cloud just above our apartment's office. The hail is tennis-ball sized. I'm calling my dad to let him know what's going on and that we are okay. I head for the closet (Todd is cooking dinner...he wasn't too worried obviously!)

6:45 The reports keep coming in about funnel clouds and possible tornadoes. The hail is still thunderous and the tornado sirens are going off. We are keeping the TV on so we can hear it's progress. I'm terrified because the cross streets they keep mentioning are between .5-1.5 miles from our home.

7:00 The sirens turn off and the hail and rain has stopped. Like several others, we head outside to assess the damage. Our Honda is covered in leaf debris, but both cars are fine...just some dents. There are five or six cars in our parking lot with their back windows completely shattered. We feel lucky!

7:05 Sirens go off again...we head inside, but the worst seems to have passed. We keep track of the progress for a few moments, and we finally feel better. There is still some leftover thunder and lightning, but I am so grateful it wasn't much worse!

I've heard the sirens go off before, but we've never had a scare this close to home. I'm so grateful that Todd was home, and that the funnel clouds above us never touched ground near us. We're also grateful that our cars are safe and intact, and that our friends here are also safe!

Anniversary!

2011-05-22T16:11:00.002-05:00

(we can't resist a Ben and Jerry's sale!)

Todd and I celebrated our fifth anniversary on Thursday. It was so nice to have him all done with school, and even though I'm not done yet, the end is close enough that I'm happy :)

After coming home to a SPOTLESS house, flowers, candy, and a sweet letter, we headed off to a local hibachi style restaurant. We haven't been since we lived in Boise, and it was a lot of fun, not to mention delicious!

We had a great time and were able to come home and still have time to relax and finish a movie. It was a great day...typical of the days I get to spend with hubby :) Love you!

P-Day in KC

2011-05-15T16:17:00.002-05:00

When you are a teacher, a P-day (or personal day) is great because you get time off, but you get paid for it...unlike sick days! Well, silly me, I had two saved up, and if you don't use em, you lose 'em, so I thought that Todd and I would celebrate the end of his finals and the near-end of my school year with a quick trip to KC. We of course hit up Oklahoma Joe's for some DELISH barbecue before we hit the Nelson-Atkins Museum.

Of course, when you go there, you have to take your photo op with the famous shuttlecocks. Originally, they were supposed to look more like stretched out basketball nets with a basketball going through the bottom, in homage to the fact that James Naismith invented basketball here. But, I guess the sculptors went with giant shuttlecocks instead, and here they are!

I know I shouldn't have leaned on it, but they are HUGE and there are no signs saying "Keep off." Apparently, I am one of the un-smart people who forgot that it is ART, and so I leaned on it for a picture and got barked at by an automated voice that scared me nearly to death. Needless to say, I will NEVER lean on a sculpture, no matter how giant it is, again!

There were some other sculptures outside in the sculpture garden, including this really weird one that looks like a bunch of headless zombies. Hence, Todd's zombie pose.

The museum is really cool. It took us four hours to walk the entire thing, but it was cool to get re-acquainted with some favorite artists I had grown to like during my Art History days :) I remembered that I liked impressionism and post-impressionism art and hated medieval and renaissance art :)

After the museum and an unsuccessful attempt to find the new Kansas City temple, we headed to Em Chamas for some Brazilian rodizio. Now, we won't be eating like this in Brazil, but Todd did get to speak some Portuguese with several of our waiters while we ate our food. It was fun and VERY filling, but Todd brought me right back down to earth when he asked if I was okay, eating rice and beans for lunch every day. Sorta takes the fun outta a foreign country, eh, rice and beans everyday? Although, this time I think I am a little more prepared for the international cuisine, after all, in Guatemala, we ate a TON of tortillas, eggs, and black beans. Sao Paulo is known for its cuisine, so hopefully we can expand our palate beyond rice and beans every once in a while!
All in all, it was a great day, with wonderful company :) The weather was GORGEOUS, and I didn't have to work :)

Now, back to the grind for 7 more days (and then summer school, but I'm NOT thinking about that yet!)

Relief

2011-04-28T21:53:00.002-05:00

We have summer plans. With a husband in law school, and the end of the school year near, its commonplace to hear people ask. And now, we have an answer!

The answer is--work, work, and Brazil!

Yep, I said Brazil. Todd will pursue some opportunities here in June, and I am teaching Migrant Summer School at my current school.

Then, we will pack our bags, grab our passports, and fly down to Brazil so that Todd can do an internship. He got in touch with someone who places students, mostly BYU (so we consider ourselves lucky), in Brazil with a Portuguese-speaking law firm. We are nervous, and scared, and excited, all at the same time! So, we have a lot to prepare for as the summer nears.

Our Dear Honda is okay. Well, hopefully :) We'll see when it comes back from the shop. But the mechanic did NOT say, "Look, guys, I'm sorry, but there's no hope!"

The weight that I gained in Idaho last summer is GONE! Yeah, I know it only took me a year, but I also try not to weigh myself all the time and obsess over it....but yay! Todd will think I'm ridiculous for posting this, and probably be embarrassed for me, but no, I will NOT be embarrassed! Hopefully in 20 years and after a few kids, this will be slightly motivating. I've tried to exercise regularly, and I've tried some Jazzercise at home which is SO FUN! I haven't been great at it the last few weeks with a head cold, but I hope the trend is one I can continue.

(And now for a long side note: All of my weight gains since getting married have been in Idaho...maybe its the cream they put in everything, from asparagus to snow cones, but trips to Idaho always do me in. I'm not saying I am enjoying the hiatus from our Western adventures, just not gaining weight from them!)

I will be teaching third grade again next year. PHEW! I was asked to teach fifth grade, and I REALLY did not want to. I think I handled it professionally, and I appreciate an administration willing to listen to me. Hopefully nothing changes, but I hope to be grateful at this time next year that I chose to teach 3rd! Next year will be a turning point for our family when Todd graduates, and so I wanted to have at least MY job be a constant.

So, there's the update! Lots of happy things to feel relieved about!

Dear Honda

2011-04-26T18:07:00.004-05:00

(Goofy times with an Ipod the same color as you!)

(Interior shot. Notice the fake teeth. This was after our car stereo got stolen. Thank goodness those dirty thieves left you, dear Honda!)

(If only I could run as fast as you, dear Honda!)

Dear Honda,

While you are 12 years old, we love you. We love your silver color and your roomy interior, and the fact that you have been VERY low maintenance these past four years that we have owned you. We loved that we make no car payment on you, and that you cost us less for registration in Kansas.

What I do NOT love is the fact that you will not start when it rains. I find this behavior completely unacceptable! Trusty Honda, you have never let us down in our entire time together! And now that its spring in Kansas, not starting when it rains just won't cut it! I want to know I can leave work after a long day of teaching kiddos!

Oh Honda, we hope that whatever is wrong with you is not fatal or expensive. We hope its just a little teensy glitch. We know you are old and will need some extra love and care. We hope a trip to Ramsey's will cure you (hopefully CHEAPLY!) of your ailment. We love you and want you back to your old self.

Love,

The Thomasons

I wish I could think of something cool to name this post, but I can't!

2011-04-21T20:52:00.002-05:00

AKA longest week ever! Okay, well, maybe not ever, but it did seem that way. I'm still in my stint as single wife since the hubs is deep into studying for finals in addition with keeping up with his ridiculous amount of classwork.

First off, sore throat Sunday night. It's always depressing to get sick on a Sunday night, because Mondays just aren't hard enough!

Round 2 of testing was this week. It's a long week for teachers and kids. It feels like THIS IS THE MOMENT. Even though it's a snapshot, it matters a LOT to our administrators, and I still end up feeling like it's a reflection of my abilities. Even though there are a LOT of factors that play into, I'm glad they're over with. My kids did a great job, and I'm proud of them. I'm feeling this big sigh of relief as well as a certain amount of jubilation over the fact that there are 4 1/2 weeks of school left!! WOO HOO!!

(Okay, so I signed up to teach summer school. But I'm not thinking about that yet!)

So anyway, the sore throat, combined with the lack of plan time at work, combined with exhausting days, combined with a job interview, combined with the end of the year sluggishness makes this a very happy Thursday night because this week is almost over!

It's had its pleasant moments. I've gotten in bed earlier, and that's nice. Todd and I got to eat dinner together two nights in a row, and that's also nice. We might forget what the other looks like if we didn't! The students have been decent, thank heavens! Our car has worked! The weather stayed nice until AFTER school was over (Recess was a necessity this week!) I got leftover cupcakes from a friend.

(Cupcakes make everything better!)

So yeah, I'm sure this little update means little to everyone else, but as Todd reminds me, we need to remember and appreciate each season of our lives.

The end!

HTML

2011-04-19T19:22:00.001-05:00

I'm feeling pretty awesome...I figured out how to manipulate some HTML on my blog to change some fonts and the comments, plus I designed that graphic up top. No, it's not perfect but it's MINE!

I got the graphics from the Lettering Delights website. Woo hoo!

Lake Shawnee Sunday

2011-04-16T17:57:00.002-05:00

We headed out to Lake Shawnee for a Conference Sunday picnic. The weather was beautiful, but it was a bit windy as you can tell from the photos :) The trees were still sparse, but the blooms are starting to come in and I am so happy it is SPRING!

Feeding the Fishies

2011-04-16T17:46:00.003-05:00

The sun came out in Kansas after a VERY LONG and VERY COLD winter! So, we headed over to the Washburn fish pond to feed the colorful fish there.

Handout for YW Lesson

2011-03-26T12:00:00.000-05:00

You can download this and print it as long as you have Adobe!

Lesson 11, Manual 3

Teaching decisions

2011-03-25T11:42:00.003-05:00

EDIT: Let me get my URL's straight here!

I've started a teaching blog over at

oceanoflearners.blogspot.com

Come visit me there!

Thursday Evening, 6:45

2011-03-23T16:17:00.002-05:00

Don't call my phone (unless you are calling about the game)
Don't ask me to do anything
Don't ask me to leave the house

We will be watching

The JIMMER SHOW!!!

Go Cougars!!!!

So far...

2011-03-22T22:28:00.002-05:00

this spring break, I have

made a minky blanket
sewn a jersey skirt and matching headband
scrapbooked 3 pages of my guatemala trip (yep, I'm TWO YEARS behind in my scrapbooking!)
printed and laminated a bunch of cards for school
made fancy clothespins with modge podge :)
updated my resume
made special K bars
ran to the post office
bought fabric at Jo-Anns
researched some fun end of the year ideas for school (the end is in sight...testing will be over in four weeks!)
spent a lot of time reading craft blogs
watched Leap Year, Invictus, The A-Team, and Knight and Day with Todd (still to go...The Lovely Bones...thank you library!)
slept in every day with the windows open (ahhhh, spring!)
gone to the gym (once! hopefully soon to be twice!)

So, basically I've been doing what any married, stay at home wife would do with no kids and no work: crafting, eating, and sleeping (Okay, so that's what I do as a married, stay at home wife with a husband who doesn't take spring break week off...don't judge!)

Hahaha.

2011-03-22T10:27:00.002-05:00

...my kind friend Steph pointed out my, um, "accessories" in the background of my pictures.

So I'm removing the pictures for the time being, hehe :)

And no, they are not still there :)

2011-03-15T18:47:00.002-05:00

Today was one of those days where I could have found several things my students did today annoying, but instead I thought, "They're 8!" and then I found it cute. I mean, I'm not really talking about the kids that kicked desks today (2), or the kids that wouldn't line up (2). I'm talking about the kid who said, "Hey, Mrs. Thomason, you're like my mom in GOD'S WAY!" or the one who had an angry face, but then started giggling when I tickled him (works on a few kids!) or the one who really is completely surprised every time he realizes he's talking and shouldn't be (you can tell between those kids and the ones who only feign surprise that I've corrected them because they are not following rules).

Anyway, it was a good day :)

Thank Heavens

2011-03-13T16:27:00.004-05:00

I know I've been a downer this last month. Todd has been so kind to me. We've talked a lot about struggles. I know that my reaction to adversity tells a lot about me. I haven't handled it so well these past few months. I've been really negative, and felt really down and unsure of myself.

In the last couple of weeks, I've felt better. I decided that if were going to be measured by how I handled hard things, I had better start handling them better.

These things have helped:

1) Keeping things in perspective. I've had to tell myself that a hard day at work doesn't seem so bad the next day. Next year, I'll barely remember these times. I try to take a deep breath, say a quick prayer, and get on with the day. I try to look at those kids that are being so good, and trying so hard and remember them more often.

2)Finishing the Book of Mormon. I read it again. I have a testimony of it. I always find an application to my life when I read it. It's not just something written thousands of years ago. The book is about Jesus Christ. It's helping me feel the Spirit more often.

3) Good friends. I have such good friends here. I am not a very good friend, but they love me anyway. It's nice to have adults to talk to after spending the day with kids.

4) Service. I have been indexing WWII census records for FamilySearch. It makes me feel good to contribute to genealogy work. It's been fun to do records from Pennsylvania and it's so simple and convenient.

5) Of course Todd. He has such a great perspective on work. He knows things do not come easily. He works so hard in school, and sometimes I am hard on him for being gone so often, but I know that his hard work now will be of benefit to us someday. He told me the other night that one of the greatest things Christ taught us was how to struggle. I'm still thinking about that, but I know that when I struggle, Todd is there to talk with me, to let me vent, to rub my back or give me a hug. We are still learning from each other, and I love it. I have a lot to learn from him.

6) Quiet moments. I am trying to have more of them. There are definitely times when I want to turn up the radio and listen to The Script really loudly, but I'm trying to find more time to turn off the TV and Itunes and think. We have a lot of important decisions coming up. I want to be able to hear the Holy Ghost when it whispers to me.

7)The Priesthood. One of the women in testimony meeting today said she was so grateful her husband honors his priesthood. I feel the same way about Todd. I would not have gotten through some of my trials this year without those blessings. They are another way I know that Heavenly Father is watching out for me.

8) Countdowns: Such as: one week until spring break!

2 1/2 months until school is out!

10 more months until Todd graduates!

Birthdays

2011-03-13T16:12:00.003-05:00

Here are some quick pictures from our birthdays. My birthday was the highlight of my week, and thank goodness for Todd because I wouldn't have survived my birthday without him!

He got me some delicious chocolate cake, and some other gifts that I had really wanted! We also went to Texas Roadhouse to eat, and it was delish!

For Todd's birthday, we was able to come home after class (did I mention in my earlier post that this is the semester from HECK for him? The universe really is conspiring against us this new year). We had some yummy cinnamon rolls, and he opened a few gifts. We did NOT talk about how old we are, because it's too depressing :) We're like, almost needing walkers now!

The Truth

2011-03-13T15:45:00.003-05:00

I don't know if I've really told the truth about my job on my blog this year.

The truth is, I still love teaching.

The truth is, I HATE all the other stuff. And it's really bringing me down. And I've said a lot of prayers for patience this year, and I'm going to need to say more.

You know, the other stuff being: meetings, paperwork for meetings, evaluations, participation in two committees, planning, re-planning, grading papers, arranging groups, rearranging groups, writing behavior plans, checking behavior plans, whatamigonnadotogetthesekidstopassthetest, analzying data, reanalyzing data, using that data to plan small groups, planning for those small groups, planning extra groups for the kids who don't get it, trying to fit in cooperative learning and PBIS, doing SIT paperwork, meeting with students 3 times a week, printing out the probes they are doing to see whether they are making adequate progress, filling out grade cards when we haven't been given any standards for the grades, dealing with that kids behavior problems AGAIN, waking up the students whose parents let them play video games all night, sending the kid who has a stomachache EVERY DAY to the nurse AGAIN, trying to get 8-9 year olds to sit still for 60 minutes with a short break in between while I run four different reading groups every day, and jamming in 120 minutes worth of math in 90 minutes and then going back and figuring out which kids got it and which kids I need to reteach, giving them oral and slate and formative and summative assessments and looking at that data again, when I barely have time to reteach because I'm also supposed to be preparing them for the test AND to learn their multiplication facts.

I can't do this. I can't do this year after year. I don't know how teachers do it for 30 years. In a world where making AYP is everything to administrators, I'm going to burn out. And other good teachers are burning out. And are going to continue to burn out. And if our parents can't do a better job of teaching their students how to behave in society, I'm going to soon spend my entire day teaching behavior, instead of content, which I'm really close to now anyway.

So I told Todd that I'm re-evaluating next year. Next year, Todd graduates and we make a new plan. It may include staying here, it may not. I'm teaching 2011-2012 in this district and re-evaluating afterwards. I love teaching, but I don't agree with the pressure we put on these young students to pass the test. Instead of having them memorize prefixes and suffixes and how to determine which retell answer is the best, I want to teach them to love different authors. I don't disagree with having them take tests, even a state standardized test, but I disagree with its high-stakes elements. One of our administrators said to us the other day that we just HAD to get our SPED kids to pass because if not all of them pass, there's no way our school will pass. Instead of celebrating progress, our higher-ups put pressure on us as teachers because they need more than money-counting skills to pass THE TEST.

How about showing improvement? What happened to that? One of my colleagues was nice enough the other day, when we were chatting about a student still struggling, to tell me that he had been reading at an early first grade level at the end of the last year, and that he had made so much improvement this year in my class. Now he's reading at an early third grade level. He's shown growth. But you know what? When people look at my NUMBERS, which is all my students are during state testing time, they see a score that just doesn't cut it. And when I post the cut scores so my students know them, I get tears because some of them understand that they "haven't made it" and it doesn't feel good.

I also can't handle all the disruptions to my room because of students that have never been taught how to properly handle themselves socially. I have no problems teaching students how to care and respect for each other, and I think to a certain extent that teachers are really important in teaching social behaviors. But I can't handle, day in and day out, the lack of concern for other kids, the bullying and fighting, the attitude and sassiness, the anger that I see from some of my students. There's just no way a behavior plan, and gentle reminders, and class lessons can fix what some students learn is appropriate behavior in the home. And for some of them, the behaviors aren't helped by single-parent households, or deaths and divorces, or by removals from their homes. I know for some of them, they really don't know any better. But without any support, I can't help them. I can't fix them. But I can't teach them either if they are so angry they can't concentrate. Or so unable to deal with their emotions that they lash out at other students in the middle of math. I've had several parents ask me at conferences how to "fix" their kid. Is it really my job now to fix kids? I sure wish I could!

Let me restate. I love teaching. But I want to TEACH. And the less I am able to TEACH, the more I consider a change in the future. I don't know what it will be, but I'm past the guilt of abandoning students who may need my influence (does that sound bad? I don't mean it to sound bad. I have so many kids I love this year. But I can't spend the time on them that I want because I have to watch the kids who can't deal with themselves like hawks). Because I can't be a good influence when the spark is dwindling. When the spark starts to die out, it's time to move on.

It's just a really long P-word, right?

2011-03-09T20:19:00.002-06:00

In guided reading the other day:

Me: Okay, what's this word?

Student: Pr--Pr---Prostitution?

Me: Ummmm, no, it's preposition. Repeat after me "PREP-O-SI-TION"

(A few minutes later)

Student: (Reading) A prr-prostitution...

Me: Nope! It's PREPOSITION!!!

Isn't it sad when a third grader has a schema for "prostitution" but not "preposition"?

When You Were Young, Part II

2011-02-26T14:43:00.002-06:00

I've been blessed to go to a lot of cool places in my life. My parents loved to take us places when we were kids--short day drives, longer two day weekends, and even a few looooooong hauls to Idaho, Maine, and Florida (my father was a brave man).

Angel's Landing in Zions National Park in Utah. I thought I was gonna die going up those switchbacks, and then again when you reach the point where you have to grab the chains and haul yourself up the side of rock, but being at the top was worth it. Now I can say I did it :)

Ever read the Misty of Chincoteague books? This is on Assateague Island, twin Maryland sister just north of Virginia's Chincoteague Island. I grew up 40 minutes from here, and it's still fun to drive the nature loop on the lookout for wild horses.

Oh, BYU foam day. Can't remember what the occasion was, probably a game or something :)

Blarney Castle in Ireland. Yep, kissed the Blarney stone (well, sorta, I faked cuz its kinda gross if all those other people before kissed it!). You kinda hang down backwards over this hole that looks straight down to the ground..kinda scary if you are not a huge fan of heights!

Half Moon Bay, California. Running away from the surf. That capped off a fun trip that included San Francisco and San Jose!

Yesterday When You Were Young

2011-02-26T12:21:00.005-06:00

I occasionally like to peruse the thousands of pictures stored on my computer and reminisce. I have a little bit of senioritis (law school wives can have that too, right?), but I also like to think back to days when school was my job, and I got to be around friends and family all the time, all day...it was awesome! Like I've said before, I'm enjoying this time in my life, but sometimes I feel like I'm still adjusting to being an adult with real responsibilities and more difficult challenges. Hence, a walk down memory lane is nice every once in a while.

Todd and I often talk about what we would think of each other before we knew each other in college. That makes me think of people I know now, that didn't know me before Topeka or Boise State or BYU. These pictures obviously have a greater sentimentality for me because they're mine, but when I look at them, I think about who the person in the pictures is...would friends and family I have recognize that Megan as the one they know now?

Anyway, here are some fun pictures :)

Todd and I started dating not long after this picture was taken. This was in my apartment at BYU, in Provo, UT (one of the several places I've lived college and post-college). My roommates and I had affectionately dubbed it "The Periwinkle Palace" because the cabinets and walls in almost all the rooms was a shade of purple. This was a celebration my kind roommates did for my birthday, which conveniently coincides with Valentine's Day celebrations (real convenient for any female roommates on a manhunt!) Todd came, and a few days later he and his roommates dropped off a delish cake and introduced me to a cinnamon roll hug. We started out as neighbors, became FHE brothers and sisters (that's Family Home Evening in Mormonspeak, our apartments did activities together on Monday nights, so we became "brothers and sisters"). Now, we've been married almost five years :)

This is the night Todd graduated from BYU in front of the Provo Library. In December 2011, we will have another graduation (hopefully our LAST!)

This is a picture of my cousins and I as we attempted a train of sledding down a hill in eastern New York. I have such good memories of visiting my Honeoye Falls cousins, outside of Palmyra New York. Every time I hear a western New York accent, I perk up and ask them where they're from :) Oh wait, you can't even see me in this picture, but that's okay, it's still pretty cute!

A long time ago (okay it feels like a long time ago!), I was deciding if I was going to go get a Master's Degree...this is pre-elementary ed degree, and post-theater degree. Todd was living in Chandler, AZ at the time, and we visited the campus of ASU. It was really beautiful...I could picture myself attending a university that has palm trees on the campus, plus I loved that it was so big. That plan didn't work out at the time, as a certain boyfriend of mine proposed my senior year of college and I decided I'd rather be a teacher than a recreational management master's candidate :)

This is me my sophomore year of college. oh dear. I am so old now :)

More to come. This is fun!

Slaves

2011-02-16T17:02:00.002-06:00

So, my students got a crash course on slavery yesterday in library. They were really enthralled, and listened intently to the story of a man who had stowed away in a box in order to reach freedom. They were horrified by stories of treatment to slaves.

So, today, during reading groups, I asked the kids to put away their notebooks and books. The following conversation ensued:

Student: So, Mrs. Thomason, we're slaves then right?

Me: What?

Student: We're like your slaves.

Me: Why?

Student: Because you make us put things away!

Me: (because I was being observed, I was a bit flustered by this innocent accusation):

Well, I guess you're kind of like my little slaves if you put it that way

(geez, don't ask me why I said that...the assistant principal was giggling at this point)

Anyway, this is an ELL student and I probably need to go back and talk about the difference between a slave and a student tomorrow :)

Awesomeness

2011-02-14T18:19:00.002-06:00

(Any man who would let me post this picture on my blog MUST love me!)

Today is love day. I am joining the cheesy bandwagon just to say that I definitely married up. I have such a good life, and Todd reminds me often, and his gentle reminders make me sit back and think about what's really important.

We started dating in February 6 years ago. He is my best friend.

I had a student today (who drives me nuts pretty much every day of the year), who brought this huge ole Valentine in for a little girl..."This is for R, she's such a sweet girl" said my little nightmare child in this darling, sincere voice.

I love Todd, he's such a sweet boy too :)

Lame-O!

2011-02-12T11:45:00.003-06:00

Since both Valentine's Day, my birthday, and Todd's birthday are all on LAMEO days of the week this year (Monday, Wednesday, Tuesday, respectively), we are fitting in our celebrations where we can. Yesterday, I grabbed all of my fun birthday coupons and set out to use as many of them as I could. I was pretty successful at Arby's, Kohls, and Beauty Brands, and I also used my Groupon to get my haircut, which I loved. Please excuse the photo, but my Mac's Photobooth is much more efficient at taking the quick picture!

So after my haircut and shopping, Todd and I went out to eat at Texas Roadhouse. For some reason, the Texas Roadhouse here is ALWAYS BUSY, but we enjoyed the wait. For Todd, this is another semester from heck, and so actually being able to sit and talk for an extended period of time is a rarity. It was fun to watch the sports bloopers, eat peanuts, and talk about anything. We stuffed ourselves full of rolls, potato skins, steak fries, and pulled pork. Then we headed to the mall for a quick walk to walk off our full bellies (and saw the Pearcemobile on the way home, HI PEARCES!). After dropping off movies at the library (where I read the sign and determined my late DVD of Lost might only cost me a few bucks instead of 10, hooray), we settled in at home for a movie.

Of course, when you are old like we are, you watch about an hour of the movie and decide that you are totally exhausted, and save the rest for another day :)

I've got a few more coupons to use today (it's so hard to NOT use a coupon for B1G1 at Gap), and so the birthday celebrations continue. February sure is our month of Looooveee!!!

Oh, and Peterson family, ADORABLE PICTURES OF CARTER!!!! We love him already, as I'm sure you do!

PA Glimpse

2011-02-03T18:09:00.003-06:00

I facebooked it, but I like to have my pictures in a million different places in case the "cloud" suddenly goes haywire.

These are some pictures I took while in PA with the fam.

I won't post the picture I took of my sister on the ski hill right before some snowboarder totally took me out :)

(This kind of posing used to drive my grandma crazy. We've grown up...a little)

(oh my gosh. the hat! this kid is gonna be a heartbreaker!)

LOST

2011-01-31T20:42:00.003-06:00

Nope, not lost physically.

Not mentally or emotionally either.

We just finished watching LOST. I loved it....we LOVED it. It was the perfect thing to fill our time after the devastating loss of Jack Bauer and the news that Steve Carell would be moving on from The Office. It's been our project this past months, the perfect way to escape from our busy days at work and school, and I have to admit I got totally caught up in it. I cried during several parts of the finale (okay, we're not talking alligator tears, just a frog in my throat, really!)

Now I have a hole in my heart. I sure miss Hugo and Jack and Kate and Sawyer and Juliet and Locke and Jin and Sun and Miles...booooo!!!!!!

Girls, I need your opinion!

2011-01-31T19:40:00.004-06:00

So...I bought a Groupon and it's time to get my haircut. I've been thinking for a long time about what to do with my hair, and I've been reading this blog of a girl who's got THE.CUTEST.HAIR. I mean, she's pretty much cute all around. She has a fashion blog, and she's about a million times skinnier than me, and it's really fun to read BUT. She has almost my same nose. Long and skinny. And so I'm thinking I want her hair, because it totally works on her! And you hardly even notice her nose!

But I don't know...do I want to go back to bangs again? I liked having bangs, so I guess that part doesn't really bother me. The hard thing about getting your haircut using someone else's picture is that there is a big difference between what YOU look like with that hair, and what they look like.

Here are some pictures to help you visualize, courtesty of Rose A La Mode.

I would definitely keep my hair long, get some highlights, but I do like the bangs, and where her layers hit at her shoulders. I like her hair much better than any celeb...plus she's a "real" person so maybe I can handle styling this every day :)

Anyway...there ya go! Salon here I come!

Here we go again!

2011-01-26T19:52:00.004-06:00

Todd had this conversation with a Russian friend at school, somebody who has studied a lot about Mormons, but also doesn't believe that any subject is off limits.

Oh yeah, and there were people around.

Friend: So, Todd, I have some of these leftover, you can bring some home to your kids.

Todd: I actually don't have any kids.

Friend (think Russian accent): WHAT?! You are MORMON! You have TEMPLE MARRIAGE?? You don't have any KIDS??

Todd: Nope.

Friend: But ALL Mormons have kids. That ______ (insert Mormon friend's name here), he has TWO kids. And ________, he has FOUR kids!

Todd: Yep, and _______, he has four kids too.

Friend: So what is wrong ("So vat is vrwong?")

.....(here's the good part)....

Did you have a SURGERY?

And then said friend pointed. To an area of the body. You know?!! Yeah!!!

Todd: On another note...(and he changed the subject. Good husband).

Yeah, so I can add that to the arsenal of awkward moments the childless Mormons have :)

Sometimes I Say Things

2011-01-11T20:03:00.002-06:00

...and Todd just looks at me like I'm nuts.

For example, today:

Me: I want to live on a ranch.

(Pause)

Where everyone else has to do the work.

(Pause)

And you'll wear a cowboy hat every day.

Todd: (looks at me and nods)

_______________________________

Me: Look! I love this song and we ALREADY OWN IT!

Todd: Aren't you glad you figured that out before you downloaded it?

_______________________________

Me: If you don't let go, I'm going to kidney punch you.

_______________________________

Here's a story I probably shouldn't tell, but I will, because it's funny now. Todd should have realized he was about to marry a drama queen, but he married me anyway. We were dating, and for some reason I had picked an argument. Instead of excusing myself like a lady, my method of exit was to run out the door and down the street (passing my car). I was convinced that if he was THE ONE, he would come after me. Well, he did, and then when I wasn't satisfied with the way the conversation was going, I stormed off and left him in my dust. When I pulled into my apartment complex, I was so mad I ended up grazing the large cement pillar in the underground parking lot and leaving a nice sand-colored mark on my poor car. When we had a more civil conversation later, I informed him he had made me so angry "I had run into a pole!"

How's that for drama!

I think Todd will agree that I've mellowed out a bit.

So, anybody else have any embarrassing immature moments they'd like to share for Blogland?

Let It Snow!

2011-01-10T22:45:00.003-06:00

We got 10 inches of snow today, which meant....NO WORK! Todd was off today, and I feel no shame admitting we spent a good part of our day laying on the LoveSac and watching Season 6 of LOST. I periodically checked outside, and saw a slightly prettier version of the terrible cell phone picture below:School is cancelled again for tomorrow, which means more laying around, more LOST, more pigging out. The only bad thing is that Todd may have to start school tomorrow. The snow is beautiful, but I sure am grateful that I can stay in!

Some Images from Christmas

2011-01-09T21:24:00.002-06:00

We had a fabulous Christmas. We slept in, stayed up late, watched tons of movies, and enjoyed having time to spend together! Here are some pictures from our break:

(This was our fire, thanks to a Youtube "yule log" video. So Todd really did get to sip egg nog by the fire in our tiny apartment)

I Don't Mean to Brag, but...

2011-01-09T21:10:00.003-06:00

Todd and I headed to the bowling alley before break was over to test our skills versus each other. Normally I am a terrible bowler, but it ended up being quite the turnaround for me :) Todd is fun to play with, he is the perfect amount of competitive. You know, enough that it's fun, but not enough that he gets all angry and upset when he loses. You know people like that, right? I married a good one! He decided to make things more interesting by giving us nicknames--thereby I became "Queenpin" and he became "Kingpin" for the day. I think the nickname gave me good luck!

One Year

2010-12-24T09:21:00.006-06:00

This week we signed another one year contract on our apartment. To me, it really felt good to be staying home for another year.

We have been really blessed here. I have reflected a lot on our life here in Topeka recently, and when I do, I'm filled with gratitude to Heavenly Father for the blessings he's given while we've been here. No matter where we are in a year, or two, or five, I think we will always look back at our time here as incredibly blessed.

We have really made a home here. We have been grateful for the people in the Topeka area, who have been warm and inviting and have helped us create a life here that is really special. We love the midwest, and we love our friends here. We have church friends and work friends and law school friends and volleyball friends.

I am really grateful for the last six years of my friendship with Todd. He is really my best friend, and home is anywhere he is. I think it is alright for me to say that we will appreciate this time of our lives without children, and look back on it as a time of necessary growth in our marriage. We want children, but life is sweet now, and we are grateful for these four years we've had to be on a perpetual (somewhat roller coaster-like) date :)

So thanks, Heavenly Father, for looking out for us and guiding us here. We would not be as happy as we are without the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Thanks, Topeka friends, who are here now and who have moved on, for being kind to us.

Thanks to our families, who have supported us while we are far away. We are grateful for the technology that has allowed us to stay close and keep in touch.

Merry Christmas!

Things and people we love:

Church and law school friends :)

Work friends :)

Oh, the barbecue!

The history.

Date nights!

The church history nearby.

The sports!

Sports x2 :)

The Winter Quarters temple and the one being built in KC!

and, finally--Volleyball friends.

Love,

The Thomasons

The Boys by Ari

2010-12-18T11:12:00.003-06:00

Dad reading the paper. I think I like to read the paper because of him.

Ian. I get to see him when I visit in Jan. because he will be off track at BYUI.

This is Jacob's leg. He's the brother that gashed himself with an axe during Scout Camp. He is a total trooper...and more careful with sharp objects!

When I visited last July, I let Ari have the run of my camera, and he's quite good. He thought it was hilarious to go back and look at the pictures he took. I took the last one, he loves balloons!

Mom called me last night and said Ari was walking around in his own little world going, "Megan...Todd....Megan....Todd." She put him on the phone and I could understand, "Hi Megan, Hi Todd, watch Cars, Bye Megan, Bye Todd." It was so cute and melted my heart! I guess my Granny told my sister last week that she was going to die with only one grandchild...um, major hint, eh? Ari is the only grandchild on my side, and Jess and I are the only ones married. Considering the next cousin in line is only 25 and is by no means an old maid, I don't know where she is expecting all these grandkids to come from! I love my Granny, she says what's on her mind!

Daily Deals

2010-12-14T19:57:00.002-06:00

These are some sites I check daily, cuz it's fun, and because I've found some good deals!

No More Rack--they list a few things a day on sale. Occasionally they offer a $10 credit for signing up ;)

Groupon--daily deals....I check for Topeka and Kansas City, and sometimes I look at Omaha too in case I find something good that we can check out when we go to the temple.

And my volleyball friends have made me a Vera Bradley lover, so I get their emails, because I can't afford VB stuff at regular price, and they have some great deals if you sign up for their email :)

Check 'em out!

RUFFLES!

2010-12-14T19:39:00.004-06:00

I am going through a serious ruffle phase. I want to sew ruffles, wear ruffles, and NOW, I want to SLEEP in RUFFLES!!!

Check this out!

I like the ruching on this one too:

And this one too!

And there ruffle curtains and ruffle shower curtains too!!!

Winter Essentials

2010-12-12T14:43:00.005-06:00

Meg's Winter Essentials--things that help me prevent S.A.D., hehe :)

1. I told Todd the other day that I would die if I had to go a winter without skiing. I know this makes me sound like some kind of diehard ski bum, which I promise you I'm not, but I do really enjoy it. Unfortunately, I think the nearest ski hill is a hill with manmade snow about an hour away, and Todd can't stand manmade snow so I don't know...I think I will have to try to swing it in Pennsylvania when I'm there in January, but that would mean I'll have to leave my skis. I think I'm in as much love with my ski boots and skis as I am with skiing itself. We got them for a steal when we lived in Boise, and they are red, black and gray and AWESOME!! The picture below is not a picture of my skis--go figure, that's the picture I chose! Suffice it to say, I really hope we will be able to go somewhere this winter, or Kansas may be out as a permanent home. Just sayin'!

2. Hot Chocolate--especially if its Stephens, so good! I am one of those people whose feet and hands are constantly cold. I stay warm with hot chocolate. They have this raspberry cheesecake kind I am digging this year!

3. Good kiddos...Finally in November and December we get a little more used to each other and I don't want to pull my hair out everyday :) They really are sweet and I enjoying teach them (most of the time, let's be real here!)

4. Good friends and green bean casserole. Being away from family is always pretty difficult for me...I am content here, but it is nice to have good friends to hang out with. This picture is from Thanksgiving...the one picture we got! Also, I have finally perfected my green bean casserole and now I want to eat its warm deliciousness all the time. It's the sour cream!

5. Winter volleyball. I love volleyball. It gets me moving, its fun to be with the girls and be doing something out in the community. We have a good time, and it feels good to win from time to time.

6. Nieces and Nephews...enough said :)

(McKenzie thought the fire hydrant was a little person she could talk to, and yes, even kiss...I don't think we let her get that far!)

I cannot...

2010-11-20T14:56:00.000-06:00

...bring myself to grade spelling tests on this lovely Saturday!

Thankful

2010-11-16T21:30:00.003-06:00

It's cold enough for me to start wishing for enough snow in Missouri to visit that probably-tiny hill for some skiing. The great thing about not being pregnant yet is that I have another winter with my skiis :)

On a completely different note, I have a family member in surgery next week for cancer. Cancer is horrible at any stage of life, and I feel really thankful that it has passed my immediate family by so far. We have had some scares, but I feel like it just as easily COULD have been us. It's an incredible blessing but it's also hard to imagine what those who do have it go through emotionally and physically. It's difficult to see someone close to you struggle.

We live in a world where bad things happen to really good people. I am blessed with faith to know that Heavenly Father loves us even as he gives us trials. I hope that someday I can understand the "Whys" of this earth.

I am thankful as we come upon Thanksgiving for prayers that I know are heard by Heavenly Father. Sometimes all we can do is remember that He is there, and rely on him to strengthen our faith when the questions and the trials get tough.

Still Alive

2010-11-13T18:51:00.003-06:00

(at the KC Wizards game a few weeks ago with the delish and not too overpriced cotton candy!)

Nothing new here. In fact, it's same old work-finals-eat-sleep-etc. Life is good, we are good, the Christmas shopping is bueno :) I am feeling really content with life right now, and that feels good too. Honestly, we are happier than many people who have babies and couches and new cars and mortgages :) Not that those things aren't fabulous, but it's not our season and I'm cool with it. Like, really cool with it. Now, I just need to get over my online shopping addiction and I might be able to say I'm 100% content with what I have :)

Here's to days off for Thanksgiving and pumpkin cookies and Christmas music and chilly weather!

Snow Patrol

2010-10-30T14:48:00.002-05:00

I've told Todd several times if they ever come to a city nearby, he is to buy tickets immediately! They are probably the only band I would say that about...ever.

I really love music and I like a lot of different music, but Snow Patrol is my staple. Currently, my favorite song from them is the version of "The Planets Bend Between Us" (what woman could resist a song named that?) from their "Up to Now" CD. My favorite CD of theirs is probably the Eyes Open CD, so if you want to give them a try, start there. They've become popular with "Just Say Yes" and "Chasing Cars" but they have a million other fabulous songs, and yep, I liked them before they were as well-known as they are today :)

What are your favorite songs or CD's? What are you currently listening to? I always love to know what people like!

Get ready for cuteness. No, seriously!

2010-10-28T20:57:00.003-05:00

I love Skype. If there is one thing that has been invented that has been the best ever, Skype is it! I got to talk to Ari and Jess the other night, and he can perfectly pronounce my name. It was so adorable. I'm sure he felt like he could connect a name with a face finally!

Anyway, he is a giraffe for Halloween. I apologize for the blurry cell phone picture, but it's still cute, right?

Here's a few pictures that the Petersons sent us of McKenzie. Oh my goodness, so cute, right? I can't wait to dress my own kids up in ridiculously cute costumes, but these two definitely are working their stuff now!

Three Day Weekend!

2010-10-25T20:13:00.003-05:00

My friend Adriane, at her wedding! The terrible photo quality is on my end!

I also work with Tricia!

"Art"

Waiting for the Washburn Homecoming Parade to begin!

Nothing like a three day weekend to make you NEVER EVER want to go back to work! This weekend was pretty awesome because Todd and I spent most of it together. I was really spoiled!

P/T Conference Highlights (but mostly lowlights)

2010-10-22T09:21:00.002-05:00

P/T conferences are always an incredibly stressful time of year. They fall right after grade cards are due, and we have to teach the entire day and then come back from dropping the kids off and be ready for 4 hours of meeting with parents. The next day, conferences run from 8 to 8. It's pretty exhausting, and considering I decided to rearrange my classroom in between conferences, I wore myself clean out.

It's always interesting to meet with parents. Some of them assume I'm a therapist, which I assure them, I'm not. I had several parents say, "I don't know what to do with my child, do you know anyway to fix this?" If I had a magic wand...totally! But sometimes it's nice to know they share my frustrations as well.

I had one parent start crying because her kid started crying during the conferences. Totally awkward.

Another parent informed me that he let his child know often that he was "special needs." Uh, yeah, nice. This kid did NOT qualify for an IEP last year. He is NOT special needs, but he does struggle in reading, which he is getting help for. Geez.

I had a divorced set of parents come in. The dad, who came first, politely let me know what I could expect from the mom. Thankfully, mom wasn't as bad as dad portrayed. AWKWARD!

So yeah, nothing too crazy. I had a mother who decided to take her kid off ADHD medicine for the summer inform us she hadn't been giving him his medicine this entire school year as well. Well, that explains a lot! I don't think we should overmedicate, but I also think if it helped him ALL LAST SCHOOL YEAR then maybe we could get somewhere this year with it!

But, as busy as conference time is, we get this Friday off, which means I need to get off Blogger and actually do something with my day!

Pimple in my mouth

2010-10-13T20:42:00.003-05:00

Gross image right?

At the end of the day, one of my students said, "Mrs. Thomason, I think I have a pimple in my mouth!"

I informed him that it was probably a canker sore, and a few minutes later, he proudly called to his brother, "Hey, I've got a CANKER SORE in my mouth!"

Yeah, I don't just teach math and reading over here, people!

LOST

2010-10-12T21:32:00.001-05:00

6 episodes down.

Only 105 more to go!!!!!

2010-10-05T18:39:00.002-05:00

I was so grateful for President Monson's reminder to us last weekend that we be grateful for what we have. I have so much but I tend to dwell on the "have nots." Today I even did that, when I came home and ached for the time when the only kids I have to worry about are my own. I saw a picture on a blog of one woman's entryway, full of backpacks and lunchbags, and kids shoes, and I longed for the days when my entryway is filled with little shoes and happy voices (my students aren't always happy to see me. My group last year was, but this year...so different!). But I'm grateful for my job and I hope that I can look back at this season as one of growth.

And let me just say, I am grateful for being able to come home and put on comfy clothes. LOVE IT!

Crafting

2010-10-03T21:19:00.001-05:00

I've gotten mostly over my beginning of the school year crafting blues (since I'm no longer in bed at 9...I can last a little longer now!)

So, if you want to see some projects I've done, click on the link over on the right side to head over to my craft blog. Nothing fancy!

Good/Bad Saturday Edition

2010-10-02T16:55:00.002-05:00

Good: General Conference

Bad: Law School (because that's why he can't stay home on a Saturday!)

Good: Decorating the apartment for Halloween/Fall

Bad: Our place is so small I don't invite anyone over to see it :)

Good: This weather

Bad: Nothing is bad about this weather!

Good: Saturdays with nothing to do

Bad: I should probably clean the fridge or something productive

Good: Hospitals and doctors and the color pink

Bad: Cancer

Good: The Event and Glee and starting to watch LOST because the entire show is on Hulu

Bad: Watching LOST is gonna take a LOT of time!

Good: Special K bars

Bad: the corn syrup, sugar, and PB in them (my grandma calls them healthy because after all, they do have special K in them, and THAT is good for you!)

2010-10-01T21:26:00.004-05:00

This is my cousin. He died last week. I didn't know him very well because we grew up on opposite coasts, but my mom always kept us updated on the goings-on of her side of the family. Just because I didn't know him that well doesn't mean that I haven't felt really sad this week. His funeral was this morning and I had to leave a meeting at work because I was crying.

He was only a few years younger than me. I can't imagine this happening to my sister or one of my brothers. I'm grateful for Heavenly Father's plan, but I know my family is hurting all the same.

Cameron (go to the R's)