"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!