The first week of school went well. It was very exhausting (more than I anticipated!) but very fun. I have a wonderful class (17 in all) and I think it will be a great year. We begin our study of letters this week so I have been busy preparing mini-lessons to accompany each letter. I will admit I am surprised at the amount of preparation I need to do even in preschool. I thought because I was teaching only half-days the work load would be less; boy, was I wrong! I have brought work home with me each day, mainly because at the end of the day my own kids are ready to leave so I can't really finish up things at school. I am also surprised at how quickly the morning passes. It seems like we never have enough time to finish all that I want to get done in one day; I suppose I will learn to better manage our time as I get used to our daily routine. We do lots of art projects, and I am still working on timing those better so that we can finish them in one day rather than two.
On a different note, I have been really wanting to share about how the Lord has worked in my life in the past month or so. As most of you know, TJ and I were trying not to get pregnant, so when I found out I was expecting I was stunned, let alone when I found out about the twins (if that's not evidence of a miracle, I don't know what is!). But, in His providence, God has brought several women into my life who have twins: there is a family in my church who have natural twin daughters and another family who have adopted twin girls. Also, a student in my preschool class has twin sisters, and the mother has been so supportive. She has emailed me different local events for parents of multiples, and has given tips and advice even this early on. All of them have been very helpful and it never ceases to amaze me how the Lord works; it's always when I least expect it!
In addition to placing people in my life, the Lord has also provided for us in other ways. A woman at church has been giving us 2 loaves of bread for several weeks now. They are fresh-baked and all different flavors. She typically gives us one loaf for sandwiches (i.e. Italian, sourdough, wheat, white) and another flavored (blueberry, cherry cheesecake, cinnamon raisin). They are soooo good and the kids love them! Not that bread is terribly expensive, but not having to buy it helps, and saving money is what we need to do most right now. Also, another lady has been going to different sales and buying name-brand clothes and shoes for the kids. I have nothing against hand-me-downs and could never afford to consistently purchase Baby Gap, Gymboree, or Children's Place clothing for all of my children all of the time. This lady finds clothes at excellent prices and has already given me 2 boxes full of clothes for the kids. That in itself is such a blessing, especially because Th and T.G. are the oldest boy and girl, meaning I have to buy their clothes new.
Every year for Christmas my in-laws buy the kids clothes, but because Ta and T.G. are small for their ages, the clothes immediately go into storage. Last year Ta got 5T clothes and T.G. got 3T clothes. They were adorable and much appreciated, but it will be at least another year before they can wear them; Ta is just now in 4T and T.G. is in 24 month/2T. I just moved both of them up. I don't have a lot of summer clothes for either one of them in size 4T or 24m so they are still wearing their 3T/18m summer clothes. In the spring I will have to buy some in the correct sizes because I've looked at clearance stuff but there isn't a wide range of options- I think I'm too late in the season. But, I did tell my friend who does the clothing ministry for us my situation so perhaps as she shops, she will have better luck than I did in finding summer clothes.
I also bought myself another bible. I love it! It's a topical bible, meaning the bible verses are arranged by topic rather than by book/chapter/verse. I have been wanting to study the character of God for some time but didn't know how to go about it. With this new bible, I can simply look up the attribute I am studying (i.e. faithfulness of God) and immediately find all the verses that relate to that particular attribute. This will be a very time-consuming and exhaustive study, but one that is very important for me to do in order to better know my God. I have a notebook that I will write out each verse in and than as I go through the different attributes, I will arrange them alphabetically in my notebook. This will probably take me years to do but I can do it, one attribute at a time. If I can discipline myself enough to get through college and raise a family, I can do this! Plus, this is way more important and will help me grow as a Christian wife, mother, friend, and teacher.
TJ is working today so the kids and I are headed to the park. Have a great Labor Day!
*I am thankful for God and His love for me.*
On a different note, I have been really wanting to share about how the Lord has worked in my life in the past month or so. As most of you know, TJ and I were trying not to get pregnant, so when I found out I was expecting I was stunned, let alone when I found out about the twins (if that's not evidence of a miracle, I don't know what is!). But, in His providence, God has brought several women into my life who have twins: there is a family in my church who have natural twin daughters and another family who have adopted twin girls. Also, a student in my preschool class has twin sisters, and the mother has been so supportive. She has emailed me different local events for parents of multiples, and has given tips and advice even this early on. All of them have been very helpful and it never ceases to amaze me how the Lord works; it's always when I least expect it!
In addition to placing people in my life, the Lord has also provided for us in other ways. A woman at church has been giving us 2 loaves of bread for several weeks now. They are fresh-baked and all different flavors. She typically gives us one loaf for sandwiches (i.e. Italian, sourdough, wheat, white) and another flavored (blueberry, cherry cheesecake, cinnamon raisin). They are soooo good and the kids love them! Not that bread is terribly expensive, but not having to buy it helps, and saving money is what we need to do most right now. Also, another lady has been going to different sales and buying name-brand clothes and shoes for the kids. I have nothing against hand-me-downs and could never afford to consistently purchase Baby Gap, Gymboree, or Children's Place clothing for all of my children all of the time. This lady finds clothes at excellent prices and has already given me 2 boxes full of clothes for the kids. That in itself is such a blessing, especially because Th and T.G. are the oldest boy and girl, meaning I have to buy their clothes new.
Every year for Christmas my in-laws buy the kids clothes, but because Ta and T.G. are small for their ages, the clothes immediately go into storage. Last year Ta got 5T clothes and T.G. got 3T clothes. They were adorable and much appreciated, but it will be at least another year before they can wear them; Ta is just now in 4T and T.G. is in 24 month/2T. I just moved both of them up. I don't have a lot of summer clothes for either one of them in size 4T or 24m so they are still wearing their 3T/18m summer clothes. In the spring I will have to buy some in the correct sizes because I've looked at clearance stuff but there isn't a wide range of options- I think I'm too late in the season. But, I did tell my friend who does the clothing ministry for us my situation so perhaps as she shops, she will have better luck than I did in finding summer clothes.
I also bought myself another bible. I love it! It's a topical bible, meaning the bible verses are arranged by topic rather than by book/chapter/verse. I have been wanting to study the character of God for some time but didn't know how to go about it. With this new bible, I can simply look up the attribute I am studying (i.e. faithfulness of God) and immediately find all the verses that relate to that particular attribute. This will be a very time-consuming and exhaustive study, but one that is very important for me to do in order to better know my God. I have a notebook that I will write out each verse in and than as I go through the different attributes, I will arrange them alphabetically in my notebook. This will probably take me years to do but I can do it, one attribute at a time. If I can discipline myself enough to get through college and raise a family, I can do this! Plus, this is way more important and will help me grow as a Christian wife, mother, friend, and teacher.
TJ is working today so the kids and I are headed to the park. Have a great Labor Day!
*I am thankful for God and His love for me.*
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