Blessed Beyond Measure

We are in the new house, finally! Thanks to my sweet in-laws for graciously helping us move, organize, and decorate our new home. We love ya'll to pieces :) I also have to thank our sweet friends and family with the big muscles (Josh, Jay, Al, and Andy) for helping to move the big stuff. You guys are were amazing! I can't believe the amount of stuff we have. Josh told me I needed to donate some stuff to the Salvation Army. What he didn't know, was that I had cleaned out and had donated lots of stuff before the big move. Ha! Andy, our family engineer, said there was no way that we could have fit all of that stuff into that tiny 2 bedroom house. Somehow we did :) We were worried we would not have enough stuff to fill the new house. Boy, were we wrong!

I can't even begin to tell you how blessed we feel. God has been so good to us, much better than we deserve.We have an amazing life, and we owe everything ti Him that made it possible. I was a little weepy last Monday when we made the final sweep through the old house. There were so many happy memories, and they all came flooding back at once. But at the same time, I'm excited to fill our new house with happy memories. We absolutely love our home! I feel like I'm in a dream sometimes :)

 I can't believe we have a garage!

 Leaving the house :)

 You have no idea how excited I am about the garage!

 sitting room

 dining room

 breakfast area

 kitchen

One of the guest bedrooms

At this moment, I'm doing one of my favorite things-watching Auburn football! Lets hope we get a win against Mississippi State today! War Eagle! We are hosting a few friends here at the new house. Entertaining is fun, when you have the room! Ha! We went to the AU vs. Clemson game in Atlanta last weekend. We had so much fun tailgating with family! Thanks Uncle Dan and Aunt Diane for hosting such a fun get together! I hated that we lost, but I also thought our guys did a pretty good job. We all knew were weren't going to win every game this season, but I did notice lots of improvement from last year.

War Eagle, friends!

Amanda

Packing!

It's official...we are packing! Tucker and I managed to pack up most of the house today. Whatever is left will wait to one day this week. We close Wednesday, but we aren't making the big move until Sunday after the Auburn vs. Clemson game. We don't miss football games for such petty events like moving! Ha! We plan to take many car loads throughout the week, so the big day won't be as stressful. Speaking of stress, boxes everywhere and  bare walls are stressful!

 This was before we were finished! We have too much stuff!

 Bare kitchen :/

Although this time in our lives is stressful and we are super busy, we have so much to be thankful for. Our new home is beautiful, and we can't wait to move in this weekend! It's bittersweet leaving the house we worked so hard to make a home. It was our first home as a married couple, and we learned so much about each other and marriage in our little home. We have so many memories in this little house, I almost hate to leave. Our home now is bursting at the seams, and we are looking forward to more space, and being able to entertain our family and friends. I have always wanted a house big enough that my whole family could come stay during the holidays, and now I have it! We have already decided that we are hosting Thanksgiving this year!

 Our new home <3

 Love the detail in this staircase!

 Master bedroom

 Huge island!

 Loving my kitchen! I guess now I will actually have to cook!

 So much cabinet space!

 Hardwood floors!

Sitting in the dinning room!

Please keep our little family in your prayers for the next couple of weeks as we transition into our new home. We know the long nights will all be worth it very soon! Have a wonderful week!

Amanda

School Days

The busiest time of the year is upon us, and no, it's not Christmas! In the Boswell household, the beginning of the school year is one of the most hectic, not to mention we are also planning on moving in a week and a half! I have yet to pack a box! I have to get started SOON! This week has been exhausting, but equally fun. Between workshops and working in my room, I have managed to eat lunch out everyday. That's a luxury I soon won't have. I'll have 17 little lunch dates starting Monday! 

Thursday was super busy. It was meet your teacher, and we had open house from 6-7 later that night. Twelve hours of straight work did not do the body, mind, or spirit good. By the time I got home, I was too tired to even walk up the stairs to get some more comfortable shoes. It's a good thing I have an amazing husband, who swooped right up there to get them for me :) Then he took me to Niffer's! I was so hungry I could have eaten my own arm! It's all worth it though. Every year, I anxiously await those sweet little faces and the most precious hugs! Meeting my new kiddos (and seeing some of my old) makes my heart smile. I love the freshness of it all. A new school year, a new class, and new school supplies :) I'm so excited about seeing them again on Monday, that I probably won't be able to sleep on Sunday night! Ha!

On another note, it has been a while, so I have many updates. The house looks beautiful! Pics soon I promise! We have the final walk through this Thursday. Our closing date is still the 29th. And somehow, we manged to win third place in the kickball tournament! It's going to be a crazy couple of weeks, so say a little prayer for our little family. We have big changes on the horizon!

Amanda

Almost Stranded...

This past Saturday, Tucker and I invited our kickball friends to the lake for a day of fun and relaxation. The day had a grand start. Everyone showed up, we enjoyed a delicious lunch, we were laughing and enjoying each other's company. Then trouble started....as in Bonnie Brown (the boat) would not crank. We have never, and I repeat, we have never had a problem with this boat. Faithfully, every year she cranks right up. All we usually have to do is make sure the battery has enough juice. Tucker was baffled to say the least. After tinkering with it for a while, Tucker and friends (Lofton, Anthony, and Andy), got the old boat to start. We were thinking that it must have been some sort of glitch. We were also thinking that the problem was fixed. WRONG!

Hindsight is 20/20 they always say. Looking back on it, we should have probably never made the drive over to Chimney Rock. My sweet husband just wanted everyone to have fun and have a wonderful experience at the lake, and you can't really say you have been to the lake unless you can say you went to Chimney Rock. We made it out there fine. Jay had his boat too, so we just split up our crew. We enjoyed a few hours of floating, chatting, and lots of laughing. A little pruney, we decided to head back to the lake house to eat some snacks, then maybe ski and tube. The only problem with that plan was that the boat would not start. Shoot!

We all immediately panicked, especially Elizabeth and me. She had her darling three year old son, Reese, with her, and Tucker let us know that it would take about two hours to tow us back home. While Reese is one of the best behaved toddlers I have ever met, the heat and hunger were beginning to wear on him and understandably so. My main concern was Reese and Elizabeth, and getting them home as soon as possible. The tow ride back wasn't as bad as we thought it would be. We imagined stifling heat, but we actually had a nice breeze. Reese had the opportunity to take a nap. Things were looking up...until we see the storm clouds rolling in. Then there was a bolt of lightening in the distance. We were literally 10 minutes from the house!

We decided the best option was to put the women and children on the boat with Jay and for him to rush us home before the storm him. Unfortunately, that meant Elizabeth and I had to leave our husbands floating in a boat that would not start in the middle of the lake. It was the best, and only, answer to the immediate problem. Jay was able to get us back safely, then he and Jim went back out to retrieve our husbands. Thankfully, the storm was holding off. Reese, having awoken from his nap, then sat in Mymama's recliner to watch cartoons and eat snacks. Reese is one of the most precious little boys, by the way. He has blond, curly locks and sweet blue eyes. Mymama and I just wanted to eat him up, but we also didn't want to scare him! Ha!

Elizabeth and I kept looking out the windows checking to see if we could see any signs of our husbands or Jay. The storm wasn't as bad as it looked, thank goodness. After about 15 minutes, they showed up safe and sound! We hated the day ended like it did, but we still had lots of fun. We are not really sure what is wrong with the boat, but hopefully, it is something that can be easily fixed! Somehow, our kickball team is ranked 4th, and we start playoffs this week! Wish us luck!

Amanda

Classroom Organization

I love being organized! I have worked hard all summer preparing my third grade classroom. I'm excited about the results! A lot of people ask me how I do it, so I thought I would post pictures of my room to help some folks out. Much of my reading plans/organization came from Beth Newingham. Here is her website: http://hill.troy.k12.mi.us/staff/bnewingham/myweb3/. She has amazing ideas about reading workshop and many free printables. I love her!

 The view of my classroom from the door. My theme is sports, and  I have three groups of six desks.

 Thick/Thin Question Posters came from Beth Newingham's website. The Word Wall will have reading, math, science, and social studies vocabulary words. I'm self-contained.

Genres of Literature posters came from Beth Newingham's website. She has lots of great ideas about teaching genres! Beside the mystery genre are mystery vocabulary words such as clue, red herring, and suspect. Beth Newingham has an awesome mystery genre study with free printables!

 Computers, educational posters, and number line

 Book Nook area. I used Beth Newingham's website to levelize my books and organize them by genre. The red construction paper is laminated and has a clothespin hot glued to the wall. This will hold student work.

 Common Themes! Once again, this is directly from the Beth Newingham website. There are 9 common themes, and she starts discussing theme at the beginning of the year. I told you, she's amazing!

 I don't have a desk in my room. I got rid of a desk many years ago. It collected dust, and I never sat at it. I use the shelf behind me to hold things that would normally go on a desk.

 Thanks to my sweet friend, Virginia, for letting me borrow her rug! This is a great area for read alouds!

You can also see the reading notebooks and book bins on the bookshelf.

The front of my classroom. The long table will hold my laptop, ELMO, and teacher's editions.

I'm still working on many things. I can't believe kiddos will be here on the 20th! I can't wait to meet my new friends on the 16th!I'm looking forward to an awesome year!

Amanda

And It Starts

Summer is almost over. Counting today, I only have 6 more vacation days. Tomorrow and Tuesday I have a math workshop, then three days off. Next week, I have only Monday and Tuesday off. I have a mentor luncheon and meeting Wednesday. School officially starts for me on the 9th. Where did July go? Summer always flies by! Thankfully, my classroom is finished- I'll post pictures soon! I'm especially excited this year because I'll be teaching third again!

The house is coming along beautifully, but sadly, we found out last week that we will be closing a week later. This is going to be somewhat difficult considering this family does not miss football games. We close on Wednesday August 29th, which will be my second week of school with kiddos. That Saturday is the Auburn vs. Clemson game in Atlanta. It's going to be chaotic and we will both be running around like crazy people, but it will be so worth it when we move into that brand new house.

 Landscaping completed!

 Dining Room

 Living Room

 Kitchen

 Kitchen

 Stairs

 Master Bedroom and Sitting Room

 Master Bath with two sinks!

And a dream closet!

As for kickball, the team pulled through and got a win while we were gone! We were so excited! We might just make it to the playoffs after all! This Saturday, we are having a team celebration/get together at the lake to celebrate! Enjoy your week! I can't believe I have to get up early tomorrow :/

Amanda

The Lone Cypress

Day three of our California trip included shopping in Carmel and a trip to the Lone Cypress. I just can't get over the beautiful views in every direction. It's like nothing I have ever seen before! Day 4 we did lunch at the Hog's Breath Inn, made famous by Clint Eastwood. I learned that he actually used to be the mayor of Carmel in the late 80's and owned Hog's Breath at one time. We sat out on the patio next to a fireplace!

Later that day we visited Chateau Julien, a winery in Carmel Valley. We toured the facilities and vineyard. We also learned how to sample wine like a pro. It amazed me how so much could come from such a small fruit!

Now we are sitting at the airport in San Jose anxiously awaiting our departure home. California was fun, but like Dorothy said "There's no place like home!". Believe it or not, we miss the hot, humid summer of the south. And I miss Bandit, a bunch:)

Amanda

The Lone Cypress

The winery

Lunch at Hog's Breath Inn in Carmel