Prayers for My Family

3 years ago during this very time, my family was picking up from the damagae Katrina left behind. They live in Laurel, and although they were more fortunate than others, they still suffered some damage. No power for 3 weeks, my sister was out of school for around 6 weeks, fights for food and gas, living off of generators, living in piles of love bugs (disgusting), and trying to make it just as everyone else south of us did. They are especially concerned about Gustav doing the same thing. I know they don't live on the coast or in New Orleans, but Jones County was the next hardest hit county other than the coast counties when Katrina came through.

They left this morning on a church trip to New York and are supposed to fly into New Orleans next Wednesday morning. That probably won't happen! My mom didn't want to leave the house not knowing what she would come back to. It scared her when, yesterday, she got an automated call from the governor telling them to be prepared for the worst. And, the news stations around there are telling them the same thing. They have everything boarded up, but they aren't there. Please pray that when they storm hits, their house will have little to no damage. Also, pray that they will find a way home on Wednesday and for them to have peace about everything. Here are some pictures of them below. My dad wouldn't let me take his picture, so this is as good as it gets. Also, I don't know what my sister is doing in her mouse ears. Then, there's mom and the star of the family, CoCo.


 

Singstar Part 2!

This past weekend, we had some friends over - Robert, Julie and their son, Hudson (who need a blog because of the new baby coming!) and Mike and Sarah. We had a great time playing Singstar again on the Playstation! After they all left, Jim let me know pretty quickly that I am a sore winner. So, I apologize to y'all again for rubbing it in your face a little. Here are some pictures from our fun night!


 

I've been tagged!

I've been tagged by Ashley to give 6 random facts about myself.

Here are the rules of the game...


1. Link to the person who ‘tagged’ you!
2. Post the rules on your blog!
3. List 6 random facts about yourself!
4. Tag 6 people at the end of your post!
5. Let each person know they have been tagged by commenting on their blog!
6. Let the tagger know the entry is posted on your blog!

This is hard! But, here we go....

(1) I took gymnastics for 14 years and was an award-winning cheerleader in high school. Needless to say, I'm obsessed with the Olympic gymnastics right now.

(2) I was hit by a car when I was in 4th grade. Obviously, I'm ok but I was on crutches for two weeks. And, my parents saw the whole thing.

(3) Jim and I only dated for three months before we got engaged and were only engaged for 5 months before we got married. Hey, when ya know, ya know, right?

(4) I was assistant to the CEO of McAlister's in college - very, very cool job.

(5) My guilty pleasure is trashy reality shows (The Hills, The Real World, etc.) and trashy gossip magazines (US Weekly is the BEST!!!)

(6) I am related to some famous people. On one side, I'm related to the Mannings (Peyton and Eli). And, on the other side, I'm related to Jesse James (yes, the outlaw) - and the one I am a little embarrassed about (we just found this out, do NOT judge me) - Barack Obama. Oh yes, that's right. On my mom's side, we are related to his mom. Don't ask me how, it's an incredibly long story. All I know is that we are related to him...and I really don't even want to know that.

Ok, now that I'm done, I get to tag 6 people!

I tag Jenny, Emily, Suzanne, Shelley, Monique, and Kristen

New Babies = New Blessings

Well, I've made it through the first week at my new school. I must say, I absolutely love it. I have 21 precious first graders that are so eager to come to school and learn. It really puts a new meaning on what I am called to do. It's amazing how six year-olds can bring so much joy into your life. It really makes me appreciate what God has laid before me. He has shown me so much just over one week that makes up for a year's worth of doubting. I feel as if these kids need me so much and it makes my heart so full when I see one of them light up because of me saying something simple as in, "Yes! Great job!"

They come to school and just want to learn so badly. They are always wanting me to see their work and tell them how proud of them I am. It's sad to think that they don't always hear that, except for at school. It makes me realize what a huge responsibility I have. I'm posting a few more pictures of them working at their centers. Please pray for me as I continue this year. I'm so excited to see what will happen in Room 5 of McNeal Elementary!

P.S.

I'm having difficulties posting the video, but I'll get it up when I can. In the meantime if you want to watch it go to YouTube and it's a skit to Lifehouse's song "Everything." I think you can type in Lifehouse Drama Everything and it should work!

Blessings!

What a week of blessings this has been! I have been in professional development all week long, and most teachers would say Yuck! But, I have to say, the ones I have been in have been so touching and motivating. I am so blessed to be working in a school district that is so in need of good teachers who have a heart for the kids that go to the schools there. I found out some statistics this week from the district and they are overwhelming. Sad, sad, sad stories of dropouts, failures, and other things that are heartbreaking. I am so glad to be a part of this district who is yearning to grow and I'm so excited about going back to the little boys and girls who need me so much. The most touching thing that I heard/saw this week was at new teacher orientation. They put us on a school bus (with no air) and took us to the neighborhoods where our students come from. Now, I've worked in Jackson schools and have seen some bad things. However, they did not even come close to what I saw in Canton. Some of the living conditions are absolutely heartbreaking and it opened my eyes and made me realized how INCREDIBLY blessed I am. Now, after experiencing this week, I'm sure of where my calling is!

Speaking of blessings, I've posted the following video. The youth drama team at our church did this last Sunday and it had me in tears. Watch first, and I'll explain my take on it:



As I watched this, I was reminded of the past few months I've had. Some of you know what I'm talking about. For others who don't, just trust me when I say that it's been no fun. How good Jesus is that he holds back all of the things that Satan uses to bring us down. I'm so thankful to have such a loving God who knows just when to come to my rescue. Even if I have to fall flat on my face to get it. I'm so excited about this year and all of the blessings that I know I will receieve. I'm going to have a class blog, but I don't have it completely set up yet. When I get it, I'll let everyone know! Have a great weekend!

Anniversaries and Broken Internets

Have you ever not been able to have your internet for days? It's no fun - especially when you're not on a trip or anything, you're in your own house, in front of the computer! For ONE WHOLE WEEK, our internet hasn't worked. And, for some reason, our internet provider (which shall remain nameless) didn't really care that it was broken and never showed up to fix it when they said they would. FINALLY, today we got it back! And you know what? It wasn't even their fault! Our virus protection somehow got messed with and blocked everything. So, I guess that's what I get for complaining. Anyway, it was no fun having to go to Jim's school to check my email, etc. But, now we're good!

Our one year anniversary was Monday! I can't believe it has already been a year. It has been SO WONDERFUL, and Jim is a saint - that's all I can say. Since he puts up with me on a daily basis, he will definitely have many jewels in his crown. Along with our internet being messed up, our camera also died - right before we were about to take our first anniversary picture! I'm a little upset that I have no pictures to share. We went to Char, ate our wedding cake (which was still VERY good), and watched our wedding - I've watched it several times, but you have to do it on your anniversary too, right? Since I have no anniversary pictures, I want to give the website for our wedding pictures (which I LOVE). Just click here and type in Tolbert-Peacock wedding under "Find your photos" and they should appear. You might have to scroll through a few other ones, but they're there! Please leave a comment and let me know what you think of them!