Finally Friday

This pretty much sums up how every teacher feels by the end of the week... thankfully it's finally Friday!

Ten Things Thursday

1. I know I say it often, but it can't be said enough... I have the best husband in the world.




2. I am officially registered for the Hope for Haiti 5K.



3. I love chocolate...maybe a little too much. I'll confess that for our Valentine's party every class had to bring bags of candy. We had so much candy that I decided that my kids didn't need the Reeses's hearts... you know someone could have a peanut allergy... so they just happened to end up in a very convenient desk drawer of mine. P.S. When I downloaded this photo it read UnSafeReesesbag.... unsafe it is... for my butt!



4. You won't believe that these words are coming out of my mouth, but... running is becoming more enjoyable.




5. Jake better choose Tenley on The Bachelor.



6. The Children's Museum did not disappoint.



7. I am so ready for capris, short sleeve shirts, and flip flops! Bring on the warm weather.



8. I am so ready for the beach!


9. I look so forward to Tuesday nights... FBCHW aerobics and then bible study.



10. We are fixing to re-do our flower beds... pull all the current bushes, plants, etc. out and start from scratch. Any good ideas on which plants to use? I want lots of color so I need some great ideas for bushes and flowers so all of you green thumbed friends of mine please voice your opinion!

Worry Free Wednesday

Thank you Priscilla, Beth, and Kay for reminding me:

"Trust in him at all times. Pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge." Psalm 62:8

"But you, O Sovereign Lord, deal well with me for your name's sake; out of the goodness of your love, deliver me." Psalm 109:21

"The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth." Psalm 145:18

And this next one is just one of my favs so I thought I would just throw it in there as well...

"My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Cor. 12:9-10

Try it Tuesday

Quote of the day:
In the middle of the children's museum I see Mrs. Holland running around and she says, "Where is Z?! I have lost him!" Z peaks his head out of a photo booth (of all places) and says, "Here I am!"



My Try It Tuesday comes from the feeble attempt of desperate K4 teachers trying to give their crazy K4-ers a change of scenery. After being cooped up for so long, we needed it. So today we took 40 K4-ers to the children's museum... and we quickly realized we were not the only teachers with this idea. I have no idea how many kids were there, but there were definitely more than I would have preferred. I was walking 2 of my sweet little girls around the craziness thinking, I am glad I have the class I have and I am glad when we get back to school it's nap time. Not because my kids were bad because they were very good, but because of all the noise in that place...I was in desperate need for some quiet time.

Overall it was a great trip. The kids enjoyed every second, the teachers got to watch their kids explore and discover, and best of all the kids are worn out!

MPM

Oh man... this is a tough one... I have lots of things that get on my nerves so instead of talking about one or two I will make a list.

1. Traffic

2. Unruly children

3. Parents who see their unruly children and do nothing.

4. People who like to argue about everything.

5. People who have an "it's all about me" attitude... get over yourself.

6. People who feel the need to compete with you on everything.
Life is not a competition. It's actually quite a compliment when people feel the need to have to compete, but it's annoying and just makes them look insecure.

7. People who think they're never wrong.

I guess I should stop now because I'm getting annoyed just typing all of this out! Or maybe it's just PMS... whatever the case it's time to stop. So to end this...

"Lord, help me to not get so annoyed when faced with these things. Everything that happens and everyone you have placed in my life has been perfectly orchestrated by Your hand. Help me to love others in spite of their flaws.... because as much as I'd like to think I don't... I have them too!"

House Work Overload

Living in an apartment for 3 years spoils you! I could clean my whole apartment making every inch shine in an hour easily. Well, after moving into a house with almost double the square footage, cleaning has not been so easy. Don't get me wrong, our house is always neat. (I live with Mr. Clean!) but it isn't always sanitizingly (I think I just made that word up) clean.

Let me start from the beginning....

Growing up I never had a clean room... well, I would every once in awhile get on a cleaning kick and clean my room or closet, but eventually it was back to being pretty messy. After getting married and having a place of our own, I knew I wanted everything to be neat and clean all the time. It doesn't hurt that my husband is more organized than me and actually picks up after himself (and after me sometimes.) Again cleaning a 2 bedroom apartment was a piece of cake. After cleaning our house a couple of times I realized that my days of cleaning in an hour were over... which led to larger spans of time between cleanings. It was overwhelming to clean the house all at once especially working full time (now I know why people hire maids!)... needless to say... it wasn't working.

After reading my friend Jessica's blog, I had a duh! moment. She has a daily cleaning schedule. Now, some you of you may already do this and all I have to say to you is, "Why in the world haven't we talked about it?!!!!!" So... I created my own daily cleaning schedule. Rather than being overwhelmed over everything that needs to be cleaned, I have a particular chore or chores each day. These chores actually get completed better than they did before because I can focus on that one task and not on everything that has to get done.

So for those of you who are curious, here is my Daily Chore List:

Monday-Vacuum
Tuesday-Dust, Laundry- towels
Wednesday-Kitchen
Thursday-Bathrooms
Friday-Laundry
Saturday-Laundry complete (if needed)
Sunday- Grocery

These chores are specifically placed on these days based on our crazy schedule. For example, on Sunday nights after church we always go into Oakland for dinner with our youth and youth leaders. Many times we end up eating at Subway that is located in their nice, new Wal-mart which makes grocery shopping very convenient. :)

Some chores just need to be done more often (dishwasher run and emptied, bathroom and kitchen counters wiped down, etc.) so I adapt as needed. I know this is so simple you're thinking, Candace, you're a retard.... and maybe that's true, but I am thrilled with my chore list and I love how easy house work is now!

Ten Things Thursday

10. We're designing T-shirts for the teachers at my campus and our favorite so far for the back of the shirt is: "Save the Drama for Your Mama!".... now if only administration will approve it.

9. Survivor was not disappointing! Can't wait to watch tonight!

8. Amazing Race is D and I's favorite show together.

7. Is it sad that I love reality TV? D is certain it isn't reality, but still... I love it.

6. My sister is getting married in less than 100 days!

5. Jules and I finally took our dresses to get altered for B and Rob's wedding. Thankfully Mrs. Monte is very reasonable because Jules and I apparently don't know how to order dresses correctly online or rather measure ourselves!

4. Running is getting easier. Now let me remind you I'm still running in small increments, but at least I don't feel like I'm going to throw up anymore!

3. I'm still loving my Sauconies.

2. I have a cleaning plan that has made my life so much easier. (more on that tomorrow!)

1. I'm glad it's almost Friday.

3 things you do NOT want to do with preschoolers...

3. Give minimal instruction when you set paint in front of them. (You will have a mess.)

2. Let them play with scissors during nap time. (You will find a pile of hair on the floor and a bald spot on their head.)

1. Make them wait until it's your official restroom time. (You will have a puddle.)

Quote of the Day

"Mrs. Jerkins, you smell delicious!"

Try it Tuesday... thanks Laurin and Lee

Thanks to Laurin's Try it Tuesday idea, I am going to share with you a fantastic way to make the boring steamed veggies much more exciting. Last night we had French's Fried Onion Chicken (the commercial was too enticing!), steamed veggies, and mashed potatoes. Neither the hubs or myself are a huge fan of veggies. We will eat them, but they're not our favorite... until I found a way to spice them up....drizzle them with Italian dressing! This was such a simple way to make eating veggies much more enjoyable. (I know it's like being a kid and dipping all your raw veggies in Ranch, but at least the veggies are steamed and simply drizzled with Italian. It at least seems more grown up!) Now don't ask me about the nutritional facts... because I assure you the dressing added no nutrition, but boy were they good!

Any other helpful ways to spice up your everyday boring veggies?


Also, Friday night I tried Laurin's latest crave of sweet potato fries. ... whom she got the recipe from Lee. Now I like sweet potatoes, but I like them covered in butter, sugar and cinnamon. Here is the recipe:


Baked Sweet Potato Fries:

3 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut lengthwise 1/4 inch
olive oil
salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 400
Coat potatoes with olive oil
Spread in a single layer onto a baking sheet
Sprinkle with salt
Bake for 20 minutes, flipping frequently to crisp

Now I personally would prefer them much crispier so next time I will cook them longer. I made 2 batches. One I sprinkled with salt and pepper. The other batch I sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. (now that version was good!) So Thank You Laurin and Lee for the idea... I think I'm going to stick with dessert fries!

Forever Valentine

Yesterday was a crazy Valentine's Day. We had to get up early and get ready for church. Not to mention it was food Sunday so I had to heat up my sausage balls before we left... needless to say we quickly agreed that we'd exchange our little Valentine happies once we got home. So a quick kiss and a "Happy Valentine's day" and we were off. We had a great morning at church eating more than we should and hearing great messages from Dr. Roger's (in Sunday school we're going through his serious on family) and from Bro. Eddie.

Then we were off to meet up with the Jerkins' clan for our weekly Sunday lunch. Before we knew it we were back home. We exchanged our Valentine happies and I laid down for my Sunday nap while he finished last minute preparations for our Israel presentation that night at church.

We had such a great time sharing with our church the wonderful experience we had in the Holy Land. We are so blessed.

Even though our Valentine's day was a a little crazy and our Valentine's date night has to wait for a free night this week, there is no one else I'd rather spend Valentine's day with. This was our 9th Valentine's day together and it gets better every year... not because of the gifts or the special Valentine's date, but because I get another day with the greatest man on earth! D, I'm so glad you're my forever valentine!

Ten Things Thursday

10. I got 2 glorious snow days this week and may have more soon!

9. I have started running…. it’s okay to laugh... it is funny. Especially… when I stumble at least 5 times per workout. (You know when your shoe kind of gets caught… yea I lost count how many times I almost bit the dust yesterday.) Thank you Stephanie for saving my life and my pride.

8. I bought some new running shoes. Thanks to Tyler (my marathon running friend) for the great shoe advice.

7. I’m running with some friends. One is “one of those” runners who actually enjoys it and has started us on a running program. I believe it’s similar to the Couch potato to 5k plan.

6. The program starts off a walking/running rotation…. Run 2 minutes then walk. You do this rotation 4 times each day the first week. We are now running 3 minutes intervals 5 times each day.

5. I realize this is mostly about running…sorry.

4. Did I mention that after running our intervals I feel like I’m going to throw up? I’m totally not kidding.

3. Does this mean I’m out of shape? I think so.

Now onto other things…

2. The fam is coming over tonight to celebrate my soon to be brother-in-law’s birthday. We will have cake and ice cream and fun gifts of course. And because he's a Survivor fan we will be watching....

1. Yay for a new season of Survivor!

Does It Work

During my glorious 2 days off, I had the privilege of being lazy part of the time and productive the other. While I was in my productive mood, I decided to conquer my shower. I can not stand a dirty or a dirty looking shower. I have tried many things, but have not been able to to get ride of the water spots/soap scum on the shower glass.

I decided to take action and see if I could find some helpful advice on the internet and boy did I! I read about several expensive cleaners and then one particular thing caught my attention. #1 it's cheap. #2 I had some. What is it you might ask? You won't even believe me. But I will share my secret with you. The miracle working shower cleaner is....... a wet dryer sheet! You might think I'm crazy or you may be thinking of course dummy, I've been using that for years,but for my lack of martha stewart skills... I was stunned at even the thought. So I went downstairs, grabbed a dryer sheet, wet it and began scrubbing away. I did not see immediate results, in fact I was again disappointed that it wasn't getting the job done. As I scrubbed, I realized I was causing more water streaks so I grabbed a dry wash rag and wiped it down after each scrub. Discouraged, I finished, threw the dryer sheet away and went downstairs. A little while later, D went upstairs and said, "what did you do to the shower?" I thought, "Oh no, what happened." He said, "It looks great." I went back in there and realized that my dryer sheet had done a good job of cleaning it after all!



The glass on my shower is by no means sparkling, but it's cleaner than it's been since we moved in. So dryer sheet, you passed the Jerkins Does it Work test!

Yay for snow days!

We're on snow day #2 and I am loving it. It's hard to believe this is happening in Memphis of all places. The streets aren't that bad anymore, but apparently our parking lots were so that means snow day #2 for me. As I type this, I'm sitting by the fire in my pj's. I forgot to take some pictures yesterday so here are some pictures of our house I took this morning.

thanks J and H

Our friend's Jason and Heather have been trying to convince us for a while now that it's time for a baby Jerkins. Yesterday we received these in the mail... from them.

Though there is no baby Jerkins on the way, these sure make me want one! Thanks guys.

Ten Things Tuesday

1. I have started a running program with some friends. I'm on day 2 and more sore than I should be.

2. I hate running, but am secretly enjoying the challenge of the exercise. (and the fellowship of course.)

3. I am behind on my bible study homework. Going out of town is no excuse. I should hurry off of this thing, stop procrastinating and get to work.

4. My current favorite house hold item besides my fireplace is our DVR. Is that bad?

5. I need more closet space. D says I need to get rid of things. I have gotten rid of things and still I am maxed out. Any ideas?

6. We're going to eat cheesecake Friday night in celebration of baby Carter. I am probably too excited about this. Is it sad that I'm already trying to decide what kind of cheesecake I want?

7. To justify this deliciously, sweet, calorie filled treat, I just keep telling myself I'll run it off later.

8. If you disagree with my justification then just keep you mouth closed. You don't stand in the way of a girl and her cheesecake.

9. I've contemplated going dark with my hair. I have decided that dark doesn't look good on pale so Saturday Jules and I will become blonder thanks to Ms. Patty.

10. I have the best sister in the world.

looking like a fool

As we were transitioning from one thing to another, one of my little boys starting singing, "Pants on the ground, pants on the ground, looking like a fool with your pants on the ground." Thank you American Idol.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tMwhl4IrPNc


I don't know why I was surprised to hear that because I hear All the Single Ladies, Hot or Cold, and several Fergie songs frequently.... from my 4 yr. olds of course.

Highlights of Israel

Going out on the Sea of Galilee.




Being baptized in the Jordan River.




Watching D baptize others in the Jordan River (what minister can say their first baptism was in the Jordan River?!)




Looking into the valley of Armageddon.




Seeing the sights on Mt. Carmel.




Standing on the ground where Christians were martyred for their faith.




Eating a falafel.




Floating in the Dead Sea.




Riding a camel.




Seeing the place where Jesus was born.




Standing on the ground where he was beaten.




Walking the street where he bled carrying the cross.




Seeing the empty tomb.

This trip was life changing. It was a humbling experience like no other. Reading the bible and explaining bible stories to my kids will never be the same. I am blessed to be able to picture these places now as I read. I am forever thankful.

10 things I learned in Israel

You might be thinking this is a spiritual list of things I learned... this is not. These are 10 pointless, but true things that I learned while in Israel.

10. I can sleep anywhere.

9. I am scared of camels... I did ride one, but I was shaking and my hands were sweatier than I can ever remember them being.

8. I love Memphis.

7. I do not like plane food except the pizza... which was delicious.

6. Wallabees are not to be worn on wet, metal stairs.

5. I am not as claustrophobic as I thought.

4. Israeli men like blonde hair, blue eyed girls.

3. Floating in the dead sea is one of the coolest things I have ever done.

2. My rear end is not as cushioned as I thought.

1. I am a weenie in every form.