I was hoping this day would not come as soon as it did. One one hand, change is great. Change is fun, exciting, new. On the other hand, change is scary, sad and no fun at all. It is only 5:40 a.m., and today is already no fun at all. I woke up sad. Today is my last day of work. How in the world am I sad about leaving work?? I HAVE TO WEEKS OFF! I am sad because I have the best coworkers in the world. I can truly call them my friends, beyond coworkers; for that, I am grateful.

So, time to that change is good.... and to try a little more. :)

I am a Cougar

It's official. I am a Clifton Park Cougar. I will be teaching the CASD (Classroom for Autism Spectrum Disorders) Kindergarten - 2nd grade class! I couldn't be more excited.

** A preface: I just was google-ing "Cougars" to add a picture to this neat blog post... A bunch of inappropriate, scantly clad woman looking for young men popped up. In case you were confused... I am not THAT cougar.

After several interviews with Killeen ISD, I decided to accept a position as a CASD teacher. I am already excited about setting up my classroom, writing notes to my student's parents, and meeting my new kids! Hooray for following dreams.

So, if you are keeping up with the Summer 2009 Life Altering TO-DO List:

• Enroll in final semester of grad school....check.
• Put the house on the market...check.
• Sell the house...check.
• Find a rent house...check.
• Move...check.
• Find my first teaching job...CHECK.
• Graduate -
• Turn 25 -

Roller Coaster.... of love.

I feel like I am at the top of a roller coaster in the middle of a loop, except my roller coaster is just stuck at the top dangling upside down. This week is a HUGE week in my life. It is finishing my Masters; leaving my job (which I am really sad about); hearing about my new job(CROSS OUR FINGERS, AND SEND A BIG PRAYER ABOVE!) turning 25; officially moving to the Killeen house; basically STARTING OVER.

Wow. what change!! And, I couldn't be more excited. Even though I feel like my brain is fried mush, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. THANK THE GOOD LORD.

I will keep you posted.

Cullen is Famous!

I couldn't be more proud! As we moved into the new house this weekend, Cullen's commercial ran on TV. Hooray!!

**Sorry for the poor quality. I shot the TV with my camera!

Big Changes

Tomorrow marks two weeks until Cullen and I start over. Starting over in almost every aspect. In two weeks, I will graduate with my Masters from UT (which I couldn't be more proud about), I will attend work for the last time (at my current job. Not forever.), move into my new house in a new city surrounded by new friends, and turn 25. Phew. What a whirlwind. It has been a mix of emotions - that is for sure.

Cullen and I spent a weekend looking for rent houses in Killeen a couple weeks ago, and found just the cutest house. We signed a long lease (it will mark the longest we have ever lived in one dwelling together), in a cute neighborhood with a great backyard. Don't get caught up in smelling the roses yet... it has quite a bit of work to be done.

I wanted to share with you our new home. Do not be confused - the colors on your computer are not lying. You are not mistaken when you think to yourself, "wow, do I really see LSU Purple, banana yellow, bright orange...etc??" Our first order of business - Paint.

I will send post-paint pictures after we move in - which is this weekend. Tomorrow to be exact.

:Enjoy:

Attn: Stanley Update

A couple weeks ago, I introduced Stanley to the blog world. As expected, I got several comments about how darn cute Mr. Stanley is. He is just so stinkin cute, how could you not fall in love??

Well, here is part two to Manly Stanley:

Stanley and Cullen were deep in conversation about how cute Stanley is. There is no denying it; Stanley KNOWS he is cute.

Stanley Loves playing with his big brother! He will go bite him, and run away. SO CUTE. He hops like a rabbit. (Wish I had that one on video.)

Sometimes, he even likes to play peek-a-boo with his momma. I mean, c'mon. Do they get any cuter??

Who's up for a little Dancing??

I have spent the majority of the summer months (May, June, now July) wrapping up grad school, and studying for my teaching certification tests. After a VERY stressful weekend, and reaching the point of study overload, I took my final special education certification test on Sunday. I have neurotically checked my email for two days now, anticipating my scores. The email just arrived - it took my a good couple of minutes to open it up...fearing the worst.

After a long deep breath with my eyes closed tightly, I cautiously opened one eye to check my score...

I PASSED. I PASSED BIG TIME. I PASSED AND I WANT TO NEVER TAKE THAT TEST AGAIN. I PASSED.

Meet Stanley

Meet Stanley. My friends Adam and Ashley found this precious pup behind a dumpster several weeks ago. We put out an alert for a family who may want a special new addition to their home, and had quite a response.

Stanely spent a several days at the vet working on some puppy issues, which turned into major life-threatening situations. After a questionable few days, teetering on if Mr. Stanley was going live...Adam and Ashley decided to keep him. Meet this precious bundle of joy:

Stanley loved Cullen. He crawled up Cullen's chest, around his neck....
...and fell asleep. Stanley has a big brother; and what a good big brother!! They played and played and played.

How Can You Resist THIS?

I felt like death last week. In fact, I missed a trip to see one of my dear friends Amanda because I was not feeling good enough to move. However, when I am sick, my babies know just how to make me feel thiiiiiisssss much better. They crawled into the bed, snuggled up with their favorite stuffed animal and fell asleep. Look at these two... how precious are they???