Love & Hate

I'm just going to admit it….I have a love hate relationship with my blog. 

I love…

     how I feel after I have blogged.

     expressing myself through writing.

     documenting the randomness of Andrew and I's life.

     being able to look back on times past.

I hate….

     when a month goes by and I haven't blogged.

     the feeling that the window has passed me by for the post to be reverent but I still have so much to say.

     scheduling times to write.

     typing away on my computer when Andrew is home.

When I started the blog it was more for others. I mean don't get me wrong I wanted the stories to look back on when I am old and gray too but it gave everyone wedding details and allowed them to follow the planning process. When we moved it was the same thing…I thought it would be nice to look back on one day but really wanted to keep everyone in the loop of our lives. But I have sense started realizing that it is for me. 

I have struggled a lot of the past few months on what this blog was going to turn into and if I was even going to keep it going. Over the summer and the beginning of the school year I loved it. I blogged a few times a week and felt amazing but then I started working and the blog came to a screeching halt. Yes, I know plenty of people blog and work at the same time but this concept was really difficult for me. How was I supposed to give everything I have to my students during the day, come home make dinner and then hang out with my husband in the evenings - where does blogging fit?

After taking some time away ( 2 months to be exact) , praying about it and really thinking about what to do I decided that blogging is something I need. I need to blog to feel like my week is complete. I need to document this journey of life and I need to write. I get to use my creativity everyday in the classroom but this is different. It scratches another creative itch I have you could say.

Overall the conclusions I came to are

1. I'm done with the hate and only want love. Why should I hate something that I am choosing to do? 

    

 2. I'm done feeling guilty. Some weeks I might blog a few times and others there might be silence but that is ok. Life gets busy, things happen and I can not beat myself up anymore over feeling the guilt of not blogging…It is stupid.

   

 3. I am not going to let important moments pass me by on the blog. If it means blogging while Andrew is home sometimes or scheduling it into my weekly schedule I am determined to make it work and capture the moments.

    

4. This blog is for me and I am happy about that.

     

Leopard and Leather

Leopard has always been a love of mine. I feel like it is timeless and will never go out of style but that's just me. On the other hand I just didn't feel like leather was me. It is to harsh and just not really my style until I saw this….

Rodeo's instagram pictures always seem to get me in trouble. I either A. have part of the outfit and want the other pieces to complete it or B. feel the urge to text Katie and tell her I need the whole outfit and have it shipped to me in Houston.

This picture fell under category A. I had to do a few returns from my birthday and had just purchased this super cute sweatshirt style leopard shirt. I needed the skirt!

Then I found a 12 dollar skirt at Marshall's.

     it needed to be black….check

     it needed to be a fuller cut…check

     did I mention it was 12 DOLLAR?!

I bought the necklace and the Houston Holiday market and it really completed my outfit recreation. I have paired this outfit with tights and ankle boots too for the cooler temperatures. 

Overall I feel sassy and confident which really makes an outfit! I am on trend but still true to myself and my style which is always very important to me.

Shirt- Rodeo Boutique in Ruston

Skirt- Marshall's

Necklace- The Woodlands Holiday Market

Shoes- Calvin Klein (last season)

Thanks Meg for my great outfit of the day pictures! Everyone go check out her blog at Everyday Meg, I hope some of her blogging abilities rub off on me one day!

PopSugar…

My birthday was in October and anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE my birthday. I reserve the whole month for celebrations and usually have a birthday list a mile long but this year was different.

I didn't have a clue what I wanted. I mean a new David Yurman bracelet is always on the list but David just wasn't in the budget this year. Rodeo, a boutique in Ruston and Baton Rouge, is always on the list too but Ruston is 5 hours away from Houston and I just didn't know how Andrew was going to pull that off but he did. Andrew and Mom insisted the help of Katie, the owner, and she mailed them all some of my favorite things. I really do love Rodeo so much but my love deserves a whole post of its own and now I am completely off topic.

I want to write about popsugar…it is the one thing I knew I wanted.

I came across the website before I started working and knew it was something I needed. They mail you a box of goodies every month which is awesome because it is like stretching out the birthday even longer!

Jessica, the best friend, really came through this year and bought be 3 months of popsugar! I just received my first box about a week ago and it is AWESOME!

It comes in a big white box like this. They email you when it is on it's way so you can track it. Yes I walked to the mailbox in the rain to pick it up…don't judge.

Everything is packed really well to assure nothing is broken during shipping.

You get a little card that explains each item in the box and give the website where you can buy more products like the ones in your box.

And here is my November box in all its glory. The scarf is super cute, the candle smells awesome, the remover is perfect for my purse, the soap spells delicious and makes my skin feel baby bottom soft, the wine tote will look perfect with a monogram on it and I can't wait to order a picture from the canvas website. I haven't tried the food items yet but I am sure the will be delicious.

Bottom line…If you are wondering what to get someone who has everything a Popsugar box is perfect! 

I can't wait to see what the next two boxes include and I am putting the popsugar box on my christmas list too so I can continue to get them after my three months is up!

Click here to be taken directly to the website for all the details.

Honored

Best friends are one in a million...Especially best girlfriends. Lets be honest girls are not the nicest creatures on the face of the planet. We are mean, catty, hormonal and often don’t have a clue what we really want therefore it’s rare you honestly find someone you can be best friends with.

I have my best friend from home, Amanda but everyone says you go to college and meet your bridesmaids (insert eyeroll here). It is just to cliché for me. I knew I would make great friends but never dreamed I really would make the quality of friends I have now.  I just feel like I have my people - we just get each other.

I’ve talked about my college best friend, Jessica, on the blog a million times. Almost every college memory has her in it although neither one of us can remember the exact moment we became friends. We think we narrowed it down to a Randy Rogers concert at Rabbs but we just don’t know; it just kinda happened. 

We talk everyday and not living in the same town as just about killed us but I have learned not to take the moments we have together for granted. I talked yesterday about being so busy and one of the best parts about going home so often this fall is seeing her.

One home game in September Jessica met us in Ruston. It was so nice because our boy band (what we refer to our girlfriend group as) was back together. I never dreamed I would get this... (please excuse the picture quality…All I had was my iPhone)

WOOHOO I AM THE MATRON OF HONOR! 

I am so thrilled to get to stand next to my best friend when she says “I DO!” 

Jessica gave Kelsey her wine bottle the same night too and we were so excited and felt it was a perfect photo-op!

The bridesmaids dresses are beautiful (thanks for not making us look ugly) and I know she will be the most beautiful bride - yes I cried when I saw her in a wedding dress so I know I’m going to be a hot mess at the alter. 

I am just so excited to share in this exciting time with her and so thankful for her amazing friendship.  She makes my life a whole lot better and if you ask Andrew he stopped trying to win the best friend race a long time ago because she always wins! (Yes, I love my hubby and he's my best friend thats a boy…but girlfriends are in a category all of their own)

Just a little throwback picture, and one of my very favorites from the start of our friendship.

This little gem was to good not to share. Two of my favorite people!

I know this post is long overdue but better late than never right?!

When did it happen?

When did life get so busy? 

In high school it was all the extra curricular’s, the football games, the parties. In college it was the the parties at the fraternity house, tailgating at all the football games and a little studying here and there. After graduation it was the wedding and we always said things would really slow down after that but they just haven’t.

We moved.

Andrew started a new job.

I started a new job.

Things are busy.

I was feeling really good before I started my job in September. Yes I was sad I wasn’t teaching but I had my life together. I was finally blogging like I really wanted too, our rent house was finally feeling like a home and we were getting settled. 

Then I got my job. I don’t want to sound as if I am complaining because I am not. My job is amazing. It has been such a blessing in my life because I have the best team and parent and kiddos but I really have been in survival mode. I am always making something for my kids, doing some sort of training, or planning for the upcoming week.

I just cant turn my brain off. This has always been a major problem of mine and my granny fusses at me all the time but I really can’t. When something needs to be done I can’t stop thinking about it till its done -- it’s a blessing and a curse. 

My brain (and type A personality) keeps my busy but isn’t  this is supposed to be the slow season in our life? I mean we were so busy growing up and after babies come life is crazy for at least 18 years then you spend the rest of the time worrying because they aren’t home keeping you busy.

I just don’t understand...I ready for the times to sit by the fire pit, or on the front porch sipping coffee. The times of weekends with no set plans.  Weekends to recuperate from the rat race we’re living in. Andrew and I just aren’t rat race people - we like the slow southern life.

I just really don’t know when life got so busy.

Happy 6 months!

I missed Andrew and I's six months anniversary last week and I wanted to post a video for everyone!

We still talk about the wedding all the time and both say we would do it all over again, the exact same (minus the rain), if we could. Thank you again for all of you that made it so special for us!

(heres the direct link to the video)

What a Whirl Wind

My life has been chaos lately...but in a good way!

About a month ago I interviewed for a kindergarten position at Broadway elementary. As most of you know I have been holding out for this "late hire" job. I didn't believe these things really existed and was just fine with subbing and being a nanny!  I mean I applied for 239984532598 jobs this summer and heard nothing so I had to be ok with not teaching. But in 3 days I was called to interview for 4 different kindergarten jobs because of numbers...everyone has to many kids.

I interviewed at Broadway first and I felt the interview went great. I felt relaxed and like I fit in well with the team. I guess they felt the same because they called me the next day and offered me the position. I was so excited and accepted the job immediately! Although I had other interviews I knew that there was a reason God let Broadway call me first and offer me the job so quickly; I knew it was the place for me.

They offered me the job on a Friday, I met my team on Monday, then the stress began on Tuesday. My principal called and informed me that I was not considered highly qualified in the district because I only held a temporary Texas certification. I went in to full blown panic mode. She was so sweet and kept me calm and helped find a solution to our problem! I told her I could take the certification test that week and she told me that they could wait for my results (super sweet right?!).

I signed up to take my two Texas Certification Test, after I got done balling crying of course. I would take one on Thursday and one on Friday. Now here comes the funny part; I have never taken Texas history in my life and would be tested on it Thursday. I am also only certified to teach PK- 3rd grade in Louisiana but will be certified to teach PK - 6th grade in Texas which means that I would be tested on 3 years of material that I took no college class on and lets be honest its been a LONG time since I was in 6th grade.

I have never crammed for a test like I did for these in my entire life.

I took the tests, passed both, and was able to be formally hired as the new kindergarten teacher.  I thought I could breath for a minute but I couldn't; things were about to get even busier.

I found out my test scores on Tuesday morning, signed my contract Tuesday afternoon and started my job on Wednesday. I got some time to set up my classroom and had my first parent night last Monday.
I have had my kids a week today and they are the most precious angels!

So although it has been chaos and a whirl wind I am grateful. I am sorry I have been absent from the blog and yes the Halbrook's are alive and well, I have just been a little on the busy side. It has been a great whirl wind I am grateful for this opportunity and for all of the people I have met already. They have welcomed me with open arms and I am truly blessed to be part of such a great school family!

I will be catching you up on our life though because I have missed a lot of good blogging memories!

It feels so good to be back!