Don't know who was counting down the minutes harder...teachers or students. I did give them a head start, though, but it was hard! Kacey and I leave early in the morning for a What-a-Burger breakfast and then hit the road with Statler in tow, stopping in Waco to get the girls and then to Seguin. We'll spend 3 nights with my family before heading back home on Tues. Since Keith is not able to come along this time, I am already looking forward to Tuesday and coming home. Girls at work were laughing at me for saying this, since we haven't even left yet. That's how it alwayls is with me. I plan this trip, looking forward to just getting away, and then don't want to leave Keith here and start missing him, wondering why I've done this to myself again. It seems to get harder the longer we are married, so go figure. Prayer for safe travels are greatly appreciated and we'll post pics and snippets of the trip on our return. :)

We are enjoying a wonderful meeting with Bruce Reeves of Conway, AR. The theme he has chosen is renewing our spirit, or something similar to that. His lessons yesterday were absolutely spell binding and directed at the mature christian who needs to be reminded how to connect with God and his plans for us as we may be going through the motions now and need to learn how to re-fuel at times. I think we all can use this, at some level, some maybe more than others. I'm only sorry that the meeting is S-W and we'll be sad to have it end. He is certainly a blessing for all of us this week. He is also the tallest preacher we have ever had, towering at least a good 6'8"!

Empathy is such an intersting word, isn't it? We need to experience it more than we probably take the time to do, and it's often mis-used in place of sympathy. In order to experience true "empathy" we have to experience the same conditions as the one with whom we are compared. (Is that correctly formed?) Today, I attended a workshop for Dyslexia teachers, gen.ed. teachers, principals, etc. and the purpose was to simulate a day in the life of a dyslexic. It was remarkable seeing how this can be done, and was a true eye-opener for me as I learned how the students with dyslexia function and experience reading/writing difficulties on a daily basis. We had a Pre-primer book to read with words written in symbols for the letters and we couldn't look back to previous pages to remind us of the words as we were called upon to read aloud. The presenter would make remarks to us based on our difficulties trying to read "Greek" like symbols that we were supposed to remember after only a short lesson. We definitely could feel humiliation! We really felt the frustration trying to remember what we had been taught in such quick fashion. Next, we had to use a pencil (no eraser on it) in our non-dominant hand for various activities, some of which had a partner covering our hand while we wrote with the non-dominant hand, using only a mirror to see what we were tracing and had to stay in the lines, forms numbers perfectly, etc. It was next to impossible! I just hope our district can provide this training sometime throughout the district so teachers around me can see why I have the passion I do for these kids. And, btw, students with dyslexia are some of the smartest people I know and have a wicked fun sense of humor. I love being surrounded by them daily and no, they don't SEE things backwards. They just can't remember which way those letters go when in 2-D form. They see just like you do.

Our Women of Worthiness retreat in Dallas was TERRIFIC! The lessons were built around the book of James, which is mostly about our words and relationships. It was extremely well organized and the speakers could not have been better prepared. They were absolutely awesome and we enjoyed a plethera of speaking styles and presentations. The time flew by too quickly. 400 voices singing in gorgeous a capella harmony was heavenly. But getting to spend the time with my daughter with another mom/daughter from SS, was the best part. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting and greeting many from pleo and look forward to next year's retreat, hoping to bring many more with us from Southside c of C. If you are able to plan to go along with us next year, please visit their website at www.womenofworthiness.com and get a peek of what it's all about and the plans for next year, as they are posted. Many came from as far away as KY, TN, AR, MD and even Puerto Rico!

I did miss my husband and came home to a wonderfully clean home, new flooring laid in the sunroom, and open arms that had missed me, too. This may be the best reason to have a get-away...to feel missed and even more special when we meet again. It was only for one night, but I make it sound like I was gone a week! Aren't we pathetically, hopelessly romantic? Now the guy stalkers in pleo have all just clicked away from my post!

I never realized until this winter just how much the sun, or lack there of, affects our whole outlook on life. I must confess, the other day I went home from work, just an ordinary day...nothing devastating happened, and I begged my husband to let me quit. Mind you, I am only 5 years from full retirement with all benefits. But, in my logicalness (sure, it's a word) I just knew I could convince my husband of the benefits of me quitting in May. I had taken time to write down all the pros (no cons) and researched my alternatives and he was so kind and gentle as he showed me on paper the frugality of remaining on the job for 'just a little longer.' He also noted that he has seen a difference in many people at work and within the community who seem to be suffering from winter blues. See, in TX we have a few cold days here and there, but usually with breaks in the temps and definitely with lots of sunshine to enjoy. But, this season has been different and now I understand what I have read on others' posts how they can hardly wait for these months to be over and into spring. The sun is shining today and my spirit is totally different, even though I'm still suffering from some awful upper resp. infection. But, it was fun "to quit" for one day.