Prayers for Amanda

I broke the news today to 21 angels in my classroom that one of their classmates will not return to school for a long time. The power of prayer is everything. I pray for Amanda's mother who is also a co-worker of mine that she may find the strength to be strong for Amanda. Please pray for sweet Amanda, a first grader in my class recently diagnosed with a brain tumor. We love you Amanda.

Babies, Baseball, and a lot of Tinsel

What an exciting Fall it has been for us! I know that we are all still bummed about our very own Texas Rangers not making it as World Series title holders but I can hardly contain my excitement considering Carlin and Charles were so thoughtful to ask us to go to game 3 of the World Series!! It was quite the experience! THANK YOU Carlin and Charles!!!

On the other hand I have had the hardest time holding in 2 of our closest friends' secret.........Sally and Evan Batt are expecting mid May!!!!! We are elated for them! They will both make wonderful parents to baby Batt! In the pic below Sally is the one eating the huge piece of pizza of course!

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas! Tinsel and Dreams is my absolute favorite event to attend each year. Since I have known Charlie Carlin has invited us every year to participate in the holiday fun! Way to go Carlin! It was great as expected!

Falling for Fun

This Fall has been so fun already! We had the chance to go out to Sunny California for our nephew's 1st birthday! It was so fun to be with family, visit the Santa Cruz vineyards and of course be with little Will for a few days. It has also been a fun month at school with my precious kiddos! Halloween is always an exciting time to be a First Grade Teacher! Here are a few pics from October.

J-E-N-N-Y spells GUILTY!

Well, our "naughty girl" as we like to call Jenny has been quite a handful this week. She is sweeter than ever and loves her new home but seems to be experiencing a few impulsive behavior issues. In first grade I give 2 fair warnings and then a simple color change to yellow, red, black and so forth on the conduct chart, problem solved. Jenny on the other hand has not been listening to my 2 fair warnings rule! Last night Charlie and I ran a quick errand and came back to find that Jenny had consumed a whole bag of Whole Wheat bread!!!!!! Good........Lord. This weekend I will be implementing a new behavior plan for Jenny. We will see how this one goes! More to come later on our "naughty girl"

Jack meets Jenny

The newest addition to our family..........JENNY!!! A 4 year old black lab rescued by Paws in the City. We love her so much already, and so does Jack! Jack on the left and Jenny on the right.

Lubbock or Leave it

This weekend Charlie and I spent our time drinking Chimey's margaritas, eating Cagle's steaks, and watching some Big 12 football! Needless to say the topography changed a bit from The University of Virginia to Texas Tech University but my heart still holds a dear spot for the LBK!

First Day Jitters

So I believe it is totally fair to say that teachers get the same "First Day Jitters" just like every first grade child does walking into their classroom for the first time each year! I have never been more prepared for a first day of school ever in my life than this year. I don't know what it is? I am always excited to start the year but for some reason I was extra ready to get the year going. I arrived at school at 6:50am this morning, ready to greet 22 nervous yet excited first grade students. At 7:50am the parents were allowed to walk their child into their teacher's classroom for introduction and of course the extra long lasting hugs, kisses and goodbyes! One child in particular walked up to me and said, "Hi, I'm Gray" (cute name). Before I could even get, "Hi, I'm Mrs. Mo.............." out he had his arms wrapped around my neck so tightly I could hardly keep my own balance on my feet! I could feel my eyes start to tear up a bit!!! It made me feel on top of the world!!!! Each year I wonder when these moments will stop making me feel the way they always have, like an immunity or something? For some reason they keep coming back year after year, making me feel like I have made a difference or changed the way they view a certain something. For this reason I will take it as it is, a simple gift from God. To the graduating senior class of 2022, I hope you look back on your first grade year and smile!

2nd Year Toast

Charlie and I celebrated our 2nd anniversary on Monday the 12th! The past 2 years have been nothing but pure bliss. Charlie and I enjoyed Shrimp, Scallops, Salmon, and great wine at our house on Monday night. We can't wait to continue our celebration in Victoria Canada at the end of the month!! Cheers to the Morris'!!!

Oh how I love Summer!!!!

This summer has flown by so fast! I cannot believe it is already the middle of July and in only a few short weeks I will be back in my beloved classroom with 24 first graders!! We had a great 4th of July celebration with friends that we love! Sally and Evan Batt were so nice to host a great 4th party at their house!

Lizzy's wedding

Lizzy's wedding was so fun!! It's always a great time when you are surrounded with great college friends! Lizzy's wedding was at Christ the King in Dallas followed by a beautiful reception at the Adolphus hotel downtown. My stomach hurt the next day from laughing with friends along with blisters on my feet from breaking it down on the dance floor all night! Cheers to Lizzy and Kevin!

Sweet Summer

Well it is officially summer! School is out, wedding season has started, and I am racking up 12 blissful hours of sleep each night which makes me one happy girl! There are so many things that I love about summer. Growing up in a household of educators our summers were spent with non-stop togetherness for 60 solid days! Not that it was a bad thing spending every single day together but I must say I do love my quiet time at the house these days. Every once in a while Charlie will come pick me up for lunch and take me to my favorite lunch spot in uptown, Pete Johnson's! I love it that when Charlie comes home from work in the summer I've had my afternoon nap, started dinner, and usually taken Jack on a walk around the neighborhood. This summer has already been so eventful and fun! The first weekend in June Charlie took me to The University of Virginia for his college reunion. It was so nice to see where he spent his four years! Needless to say UVA is the prettiest college campus I have ever seen, or excuse me the prettiest "Grounds" I have ever seen! Here are a few pics from the weekend!

Sweet Baby Will

We are so lucky to have Caitlin and baby Will in town for 10 days! I've spent a few afternoons after work playing with Will and catching up with my sister in law Caitlin. Mike our brother in law is in China for work which in turn calls for a trip back to Texas for Caitlin and Will. Will is so big now and needless to say a chunky monkey! Charlie and I love getting the chance to play with our sweet nephew! Here are a few pics of the stud muffin!

Wedding Season in Full Force

Charlie and I had a great weekend full of friends, family and WEDDINGS!! I just love going to weddings. I used to never cry at weddings but ever since my own almost 2 years ago I cry at every single one! We were so lucky to be able to attend 2 weddings on Saturday. The 1st wedding was a beautiful outdoor wedding at the old historic Aldredge House on Swiss Avenue. Ariel and Joe Kidwell tied the knot on what couldn't have been a more beautiful day in Dallas! Ariel and Joe make a fabulous couple and we are so blessed to call them our dear friends. Saturday night our great friends Meagan and Campbell Henry were married at Christ the King which was followed by an amazing reception at the Crescent Hotel downtown Dallas. Charlie and I enjoyed dancing the night away and eating our second round of wedding cake for the day!! After all, "All You Need is Love!!"

Ariel and Joseph Kidwell

The Aldredge House

Ariel and Joe




Meagan and Campbell Henry

Meagan's beautiful cake
Meagan and Campbell's reception

We Live for the Weekends!

This weekend was super fun! Friday night we went to dinner with my in-laws and then went to see Michael Hearne sing! Michael Hearne is a singer out of Taos New Mexico who we have the pleasure of seeing when we are out in Taos! He was great as always. On Saturday night Charlie and I enjoyed a great evening with Meagan and Campbell at their cocktail party at the Petroleum Club. It was super fun to hang with the soon to be married couple! We look forward to their wedding in April! Sunday I had brunch with my great friend Elizabeth Bayer at Lemmon Bar. We soaked up the sun on the patio and talked for hours! Oh how we love our Dallas weekends!