The first week

Well I survived...but just barely.

I had it so nice last year and I didn't even realize it. I was actually able to see all my kids every day and be every where that I needed to be but that is a thing of the past. We have gotten quite a few new students with some very high needs and my world has been turned upside down. I am really worried about what will happen when Angela goes on maternity leave in about 2 weeks...It's gonna be a rough year.

Luckily I work with the sweetest kids in the whole world and I'm always happy to see them and be around them...that makes a huge difference...I wouldn't give a single one of them up :-)

Apparently I work in one of the fastest growing subdivisions in the school district...I can't even imagine what lies ahead. But I'm sure I'll get through it.

Costa Rica

Our house was in a little cove where the boats would "dock" but they didn't have an actual dock they just anchored the boats off-shore and would go out when it was low tide.

They sunsets were amazing.

During rainy season they have dramatic tides so when it was high tide there were some pretty good swells for about 4 hours so Les and I would go out and body surf. It was so fun.

There were several howler monkeys that lived in the trees around our house. They were really cute to look at but a little annoying when they started howling in the middle of the night.

We rented a car and drove over to Arenal where there is an active volcano. It was a little cloudy so we couldn't see the very top but it was still neat.

Les posing out in front of the Arenal Lake that we had to drive around to get to the volcano.



This is the hammock on our porch where I did the majority of my book reading.



This is our little path to the beach. Our house was surrounded by trees, it was so peaceful and relaxing.

This is a cool pic of a volcanoe from the airplane.

Finished!

Well I'm finally DONE! Done, done, done, done, done...well......for now.

My name is Lindsey and I am an addict...I think I'm ready to quit but in the back of my mind I know I will go back...

Most of you already know my drug of choice is school...I like it so much I made it my career...lol

I've already looked into a few programs that I may start in the fall so you will probably see more from me...

...but for now my graduation is May 15th. I'm pretty excited...it seems a little surreal because it came so fast

On a more serious note, I am so blessed to work with such a loving, thoughtful co-teacher. She surprised me on Thursday with a mini-graduation party at our faculty meeting. I was a little embarrassed because I had no idea what she had planned but I was also very appreciative...its so nice to work with people who just care about you and do those little things to make you feel special.

More Pics From Italy

Well I promised to post more pictures from Italy but I kept forgetting...so here they are...hope you enjoy :-)





The Duomo from the top of the bell tower



The Baptistery at the Piazza del Duomo





St. Paul's Basilica




The Trevi Fountain at night...it was absolutely gorgeous!



The outside walls at Pompeii...a city from around 400 B.C. that was preserved by the ash of Mount Vesuvius


A beautiful basilica we passed on the way to Pompei



The town of Luca is one of the most beautiful historic Tuscan towns in the area...its like something out of a movie


The view from the top of the bell tower at the Duomo


The coastline at Naples






An amazing groto at the Medici Palace




This was a very strange statue of a famous midget riding a turtle?... so Les and Ethan thought they should "Do as the Roman's Do"



Famous Labyrinth




The view from the top of the tower of Pisa







The famous Bronze doors outside of the Duomo Baptistry in Florence called the "Gates of Paradise"


...there were so many things to see and take pictures of I can't even remember what all of it was but it has gotten me so interested in Roman History and the Renasaince Period. I

Slumber party at Aunt Lindsey's!

So I went and picked up Lindsey and Holly on Saturday night so we could have a little slumber party. I was a little worried...I had never had either of them spend the night and certaintly not at the same time but I am pretty resiliant so I thought "how hard could it be." Luckily they are the easiest little girlies to please...Holly chased Darwin around and fed him crackerrs while Lindsey sat and talked, and talked, and talked...and then snuggled with Uncle Les. It was really fun and I can't wait to do it again except the dirty diapers...I could do without that part :-) haha!

The trip of a Lifetime!...

This is when we were climbing the bell tower....over 400 steps....exhausting












In front of some really cool old doors... Les is too cool for me :-)














The chains that the Apostle Peter was bound with











The view from the top of the Tower of Pisa











Les and Me in Florence










Playing around in the Boboli Gardens at the Medici Palace










I'm trying to kiss a wild boar...can you beleive they actually eat wild boar...strange














Allison and I just had to get some amazing Italian Shoes :-) And mine are made from Italian Leather...we only had to stop in about 100 shops before we found the perfect ones.











The Moses...one of Michelangelo's first sculptings...he created this when he was only 24...amazing!













Outside of St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican Square










The Tuscan countryside











A really amazing walkway through the trees













Pisa...that's extreme!










I'm so strong...












Les decided to use his amazing kickboxing skills













Florence...this is the only remaining original bridge from before WWI...all the others were destroyed












....this is just a small taste of the amazing trip we took. I wish I could have taken you all with me; it was the vacation of a lifetime and I am officially interested in history now!

I plan to put up more pictures later but I don't want to overwhelm you with hundreds of pictures at once, lol :-)

Mavericks' Game

One of the exciting things about living in this area is all the pro-sports organizations. We love the Cowboys, Mavericks, and Rangers, and we always talk about going to their games but then we get too busy and forget. So Les decided "spur of the moment" that we would go to a Mavs game this weekend. He got online and bought some tickets...

but he couldn't just buy tickets...he had to get some really awesome tickets... on the 8th row

I had only been to a Mavs game once before and we sat in the very very top so this was pretty exciting.

We had a great time!