"Go Fish, not Gold Fish"

If I haven't told you much about my class this year, they are a complete handful and a complete blast all at the same moment.  I know they tell you that you will never forget your first class and that is totally true...they totally have my heart :)  Now that it's getting to the end of a semester, I have loved how they are starting to become more independent (praise the Lord) and starting to discover their wonderful personalities.  I am starting to be able to be myself around them now, and have more fun in the classroom without loosing control! I am also starting to learn how to balance my time and how to use my time in a productive manner!

While teaching my tutoring kids yesterday we starting playing "GO FISH: MAKING TEN."  You play it the regular way, except instead of trying to make a match, you are trying to make ten.  So if I have a 9, I would say so and so do you have a 1.  Their response was "Gold Fish!"  After correcting them time and time again, we decided to just call it gold fish instead of go fish...I'm pretty sure the language barrier didn't help at all either for this particular child :)

Little show of our precious Christmas tree!

Also if you don't know about one little special boy in my class, let me tell you about him!  In a nutshell, the second day of school he was throwing chairs and tables because of his anger, he has battled this anger all year long in how to control it, he has a not so ideal home life, and truly desires to be loved.  The biggest lesson I learned so far this year, after feeling VERY overwhelmed by him in the beginning, was my kids need relationships.  I may not have the "smartest" class, but I know my kids, they know I love them, they know I'm here for them.  That is especially true with my "loco" boy. I have such a deep relationship with him, I truly believe he finally feels peace when he comes in the room. THIS is the gospel and how it is lived out.  Not me, but God taking heart of what's his, his children and wrapping them in love.  I have seen his heart soften and know that he is experiences God's loved through relationships he has built in our class.  My prayer is that he would continue to learn about the characteristics of Christ and that he would begin to love Jesus.

Here's a few of the "Favorite December Tree" that they were asked to decorate at home and bring to school. They could decorate them with anything around the house such as beans, macaroni, etc. :)

Oh little pumpkins :) (yes those are half eaten skittles and gumdrops)

Well Sean and I spent the better have of the night (yes the night before his OSCE) looking up places to live when we go to residency.  We looked up places in Dallas, Fort Worth, Temple, Houston, and his personal favorite Denver.  Lets just say we soon became ok with spending $2000 a month to get a sweet luxury apartment....well maybe one of us was ok with it :)  We keep discussing all the possible avenues that our lives could take over the next few years, and like I said I'm so glad we're not having to plan it out.  We know God is in control and already has a place prepared...what unbelievable peace!

Change

Change

This year has been a year of change to say the least.  A surprising move to Amarillo, Sean and I having "big people" jobs, new community, new desires, new friends, new challenges, new praises. Jeremiah 29:11 started to become something that I truly didn't have faith in. Plans of a future and a hope? Really? In a time and place where I feel lonely and stagnant?  I saw different reasons for God's divine purpose of us being in Amarillo, but selfishly didn't like the transition.  I saw that an amazing church plant was happening, but selfishly missed Redeemer.  I saw why Sean was placed with the individuals he was placed with for his rotation group, but felt jealous of there time. I saw why I was blessed with a job, but felt exhausted and warn out by lunch time.

This past semester has been one of change....yes to say the least....but of unbelievable growth.  God is a God who is purposeful and efficient. In Lubbock he blessed us with a community of believers that challenged us as individuals and in our marriage.  He taught us in a very short time how much Sean and I needed that in order to be more like Christ.  Because he prepared us and taught us about how beautiful he is, this whole Amarillo move  should have allowed us to know him deeper and make him known.  Instead we have failed miserably.  

I realized the other day, so much of my feelings this semester have been emotionally driven, or flesh driven.  Instead of living out the gospel and allowing Christ to redeem me, I decided how the day went with how I felt.  Those are common words for a girl...."how I felt."  However, what I realized was that of course earthly things will pass and let me down.  Christ, however, is eternal joy that I can praise everyday.  How I felt is from my flesh.  Yes, how you feel is how you feel, but why? and what will you do with it? is the next step.  

Praise the Lord for a merciful God who loves and desires us to love him. "...be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."  Be transformed by the renewal of your mind.  Allow Christ to make new my mind, my thinking, my perception, that it may be aligned with his perfect will.

Ps here's a little snip it of what Sean was doing during this word vomit :)  Hullabaloo for 5 more days until surgery rotation is over! 

Can you tell I like playing with my new snazzy iphone4s camera!  More pictures to come :)

Bloggaholic

Even though I may be the world's worst blogger, I am defiantly not absent from the blogging world.  Thanks to Pinterst, being a teacher, being a wife, and having the itch to nest in our house, blogs have become quite an obsession.  Therefore my early New Year's resolution is to blog more!


I started this blog because after Sean and I got married, we wanted a way to keep in touch with all of our close friends and family.  Lord knows I have dropped the ball on that, but I still desire to update everybody with our oh so exciting and changing lives out here in Amarillo.


Even though I wouldn't say we live in the more booming and hip city every, there are LOTS of exciting things that are happening in the Townsend world.

1. Sean is in his 3rd year of medical school with residency right around the corner.  There is so much to consider and so many options that will lay the foundation of our future.  Every time we start talking about it, I know God is saying, "I already have it planned out for you."  Such overwhelming peace to know that!

2. I have my first teaching job, teaching 2nd grade and I am "loving" it.  Yes, ok I really do love it.  People keep telling me, "It gets easier after your first year!"  I just have to trust that :)  I have 16 precious little babies that I adore.  They have taught me SO very much about life and keep me laughing (yes sometimes crying to) all the time.  More stories/projects/ideas/pictures to come!


My favorite quote so far came from a very witty little boy.  We were learning how to write letters and he decided to write one to favorite teacher....me :)  He said, "Mrs. Townsend, can you tell me how to spell taught.  Not tater tot, like you taught me something."  How precious is he!

3.  We are apart of the first Acts 29 church plan in Amarillo!  Our good friends David and Kate (who should be having their first little baby any second) followed God's calling in starting a gospel centered church in a "church on every corner" type of city.  Already we have been challenged and seen the gospel being shared.  God was amazing in how he worked everything out!  Again, more to come!

Those are some big ones.  I do promise, more to come!