Where did January go??

Wow..I can't believe January is almost over. The only time I ever find myself hoping time flies by is when Blaine is gone. This month started out really slow..it felt like months had already passed, and it was only the 10th! I think time is passing faster now that I am so busy with different things. Deployments also mean restaurant tables that look like this..all manners surrounding cell phone use at dinner fly out the window when you are waiting for a phone call from the desert...

For a couple of weeks, I had nothing to do, so I found myself volunteering for everything under the sun..just to fill my calendar! I even volunteered to help make a deployment quilt with some of the other spouses in our squadron. For those of you who know me well..you know that I can sew buttons on garments..and that's about it. I signed up for this project, hoping some of the other girls would teach me how to quilt. I'm learning..but I'm not sure I'm ready to purchase a sewing machine just yet!

In addition to our regular Friday-night pizza parties at Rachel's home (Thank you, Rachel, for helping us keep our sanity!), some of the girls have been out to enjoy Charleston a few times. The Citadel had a semester kick-off party for the graduate students, so I invited some other spouses to go out with me. We had a great time..ending the night with what has become a very funny story to tell. If you would like more information on this, you can read Michelle T's blog entry titled, "That thing is moving!"...that's all I'm going to say. Michelle tells the story quite well!

I also started student-teaching last week! This is my last semester at The Citadel, and I am working with a very experienced biology teacher at Stratford High School. I could not have been more blessed with this placement..the school is five minutes from our house and I have the same type of class each class period, so I only have to make one lesson plan each day! The best part, though, is that they are all college prep classes, so the students actually WANT to be there and learn (well, most of them)! It really could not get any better than this. So far, I have only been observing and won't actually start teaching the classes myself until the second week of February. I'm really excited about this experience and having the opportunity to work with such a knowledgeable teacher!

Lastly, we had our January spouses social last night..we went ice skating!! I haven't been ice skating since visiting Alaska six years ago..and you could tell by my skills out on the ice! It was a lot of fun and we had a great turnout. I don't recall ice skating being such a workout..my legs hurt so much that I could barely get out of bed this morning! Maybe I should make this a regular thing.

Blaine is doing well, although there's not a whole lot he can talk about over the phone or email. I usually get the "I'm fine, just working, going to the gym, and sleeping" from him! He is doing things that are much more exciting, but won't be able to discuss any of them until he gets home. He did get a break from his regular routine when he was sent to Jordan for a few days. He stayed in a very nice hotel and even had a massage. I didn't feel too sorry for him that week! I will keep everyone updated on him when I can.

I would say "here's to the next three months passing by quickly", but I recently received an email..you know, one of those that talks about enjoying each day because you can never rewind. I recommend watching the presentation: http://www.theinterviewwithgod.com/. I watched this one night this week, when I was exhausted after being at school all day, and hoping that this would fly by so that we could get on with things already! But, those words really sank in, and I realized that I should start enjoying each day, rather than going to sleep early to just end the day. I've decided that Blaine will be home when he gets home..and I'm going to make the most of each day with my students and friends until then! So, here's to enjoying life for the next three months...