It's official...

It's official - as of 5:45 today, I am officially finished with my two spring classes! Hooray! Thankfully Mom and Billy were around to celebrate with, but it was a bit strange coming home to a quiet house with nothing I "had" to get done, and nobody around. There will always be a list of things to do, but it is a truly wonderful feeling having these classes behind me! I plan on enjoying the next couple of weeks, and then once June hits, get started on all those lovely pre-assignments before I head to Switzerland! I can't think about that now though - I'm going to spend as much time as I can reading books that I've wanted to read all year, and just relaxing!

I also found this song that I know I had posted many months ago, but wanted you to hear it again.


I hope you have a wonderful weekend, and if you don't have anything going on tomorrow morning, drop by the little league fields and enjoy a few Challenger Baseball Games! I'm coaching the Xtreme team at 10am! www.baycitychallenger.com

Goodnight and God bless.

A Look at What God is Doing in Russia

Moving On...

So as usual, I posted another Facebook message the other day and got back some rather interesting responses! I think all that it said was "Addie Nauman is moving on..." and from what I've gathered, everyone assumes that means I'm leaving Bay City! To answer some of their questions, I was referring to a number of things, mainly schools. :) At the time I posted that update, I knew I was going to move up to the Junior High. As of today though, I am officially a new 6th Grade Social Studies (World History) teacher and I am ecstatic! I will be teaching with Casey again, the other 5th grade ELA teacher, and Julie, a 5th grade teacher at my current school as well! We are so excited! Casey called me and left a message on my phone because I was at a workshop all afternoon, and I was literally jumping for joy as I listened! I am finally getting to teach a subject I absolutely love! :) (I don't know if I'm going to be good at it, but I will be trying my best!)I'm already planning how to decorate my new room - no more posters on how to form a paragraph correctly, or what a noun or pronoun is - it's all about those continents! Hooray!

So now back to reality - I can only be excited for a mear moment. Assignments to do, papers to write, back to work on this International Education degree - how fitting! :) God bless.

Just a Day...

It's almost eleven o'clock on this first Monday of May, and I'm just at a loss. I should be up and moving around, typing away on my computer finishing up assignments that are long overdue, but I just can't. I'm finding myself feeling rested, but still needing to sleep! The lights are out, my window unit is running which makes it extremely cozy under my sheets, and I just don't want to do a single thing. Well, I guess I am "blogging" - and that requires just a little effort.

I haven't done well at keeping my blog readers updated in recent months. The theme of most of my entries has been on lack of time and motivation, and yes, that still continues, but I do see the end coming soon.

This past month has brought about many changes in my life as well as some of my friend's. I am excited to report that my dear friend Lizabeth is moving to Peru for a year to volunteer, and I am so happy for her! I'm finding myself a bit envious of her up and coming journey, but I know God will truly bless her on this next adventure. Hopefully I will get down there next summer to visit! Many friends had birthdays, some I remembered, and some I forgot. :) I'm just not myself lately, so if you're reading this, and I missed your birthday, I am SOOOOO sorry! Hopefully soon I can resort back to the good ol' snail mail that I used to love to write! Unfortunately I'm never in my car, so I don't call people anymore, and when I am on my computer it's for school work and the last thing I want to do is write a real email to someone! Excuses, excuses, I know, but it's true. It's not that I don't love you - I just can't seem to 'get it together' anymore. What's happening to me?!

Our Supper Club has been growing, and we've even opened it up to young married couples! I called up a new guy tonight and hope he will make it to dinner tomorrow. My sister in law and nephew Matthew came for a visit two weeks ago, and I still can't get over how fast he is growing. I do wish I lived closer to them - I feel like I'm missing out on being the "aunt" I've always wanted to be. I don't know what I'd do without my aunts.

I had the biggest compliment this past weekend - from my uncle. My whole life I've always wanted someone to tell me I look like one of my parents. You know how you can always tell which one the child looks like or favors, but in my childhood, and adulthood now, no one has ever compared me to any of them! I've always been told I look like my aunt, and that is a wonderful thing, but it's just that I often thought that maybe I was adopted or something! Well, that soon changed - this weekend, my uncle told me that now that I've lost some weight, I look just like my mom! What a compliment! I think my mom is beautiful! I had a huge smile on my face the rest of the evening - thank you Uncle Robin for sharing that with me.

On to the Women's Ministry at my church. I was asked to be a part of the ministry team recently, just as plans were being made for our Spring retreat. I didn't realize all that I had offered to help with until the night before the event, but I have to say we had a splendid weekend. Almost sixty women came to both sessions, and what a blessing it was. Our them was "authenic beauty" and one of my tasks was to interview men and ask them one simple question - "What makes a woman beautiful to you?" I shared with the ladies just a small bit of background info. on who I talked with and then what they had to say. The similarities and differences were quite interesting, and funny at times, especially when you look at how the single men answered in comparison to the married for twenty-five years or over men! I would share them with you on here, but some of the guys wanted to be kept anonymous, so I will do as they wish.

The TAKS testing season has come and gone, and with that, I feel like I can breathe again! We still have the Math retake test, but the bulk of it all is over with - especially all the reading! Yeah! Another big event in my 'school life' is that I found out Friday, that I am officially moving up to the Junior High! Shocking, I know! With no Kindergarten Jobs open in the district at this time, I resorted to finding another way to instill "change" in my life, and volunteered to move up to sixth grade, which will now be housed on the junior high campus. Never did I think I would become a junior high teacher, but as I always say, God has a sense of humor! We met with our new principal today, and I really am excited about the move - just disturbed by all the ranting and raving from some of the other teachers moving over as well. Everyone seems a bit stressed, asking question after question which obviously can't be answered right now! I just sat there in silence at the meeting - I was overwhelmed with all the questions! I'm just going to be happy about the move, make the most of it, not stress, and teach what my new principal thinks I'll be best at. I did put a word in for teaching Social Studies - world history, which I think would be a ton of fun, but I'm going to have to wait and see. He told us we should know by Friday what our content will be.

So on to this weekend. I came back from Austin just in time to help coach the Xtreme team with Challenger Baseball! The kids did a great job! Saturday was spent cleaning up the yard, killing thousands of mosquitoes with great insect killer, and then resting. I woke up early and went to church as usual, as well as lunch with some friends, which has become a weekly outing. Something was said at lunch though, that has really got me thinking. I'm a bit perplexed actually, and the thoughts just won't get out of my head. In recent weeks I've been asked a few times when I'm moving next. That question has never really bothered me-I know I don't have the best record of staying in one place, and my three year mark will be coming up in September, but for some reason, it just didn't sit well. I was a bit hurt this past Sunday when the friends that I was with kept talking about it. They were making bets on when I would be gone next, and when I do leave, who wants to buy my house, or who wants to rent the rooms out. It's like they're just waiting for me to leave! I know that's not really the truth and I know they were just doing it in fun, but gosh, it really made me think. I struggle with it, I really do, but I truly feel content here. Unfortunately after lunch though, my mind was racing. Am I supposed to be here? Is having them ask me a way God is saying time to move on? Do I really have to leave - is it just expected of me? What if I don't want to? Will people be disappointed if I stay? I just want someone to say "Addie, I want you to stay, please don't leave," but I know that's not going to be happening anytime soon! So what am I supposed to think now - my heart is torn. I really have been content in being here - I want to change my pattern of moving all the time, but yet in the back of my mind I'm thinking about all the opportunities that could lie ahead. I want a reason to stay - Just pray for me please - I'm at a loss.

I guess I'll have to end it here for now. So much to think about and end upon. My eyes are gradually closing between sentences, so I better logout and go to bed. Until next time, take care and God bless.

Are you a risk-taker?

So I made a comment on my Facebook page this evening that had to do with taking a risk – is it really worth it? I didn’t list the “risk” I was referring to, but I was surprised to see so many people say go for it! My first instinct was yeah, I should, but then my mind starts to think about all that could happen, if I were to actually take the risk. Now, I’ve never been one to really turn down a task, but sometimes, well, I just have to ask myself if it is truly worth, in this case, getting hurt. I did a bit of research and came up with some interesting points in regards to “risk taking” and wanted to share them with you.

What Is Risk Taking?
* To laugh is to risk appearing the fool;
* To weep is to risk appearing sentimental;
* To reach out for another is to risk involvement;
* To expose feelings is to risk exposing true self;
* To place your ideas, your dreams before the crowd is to risk their loss;
* To love is to risk not being loved in return;
* To live is to risk dying;
* To hope is to risk despair;
* To try is to risk failure;
* But risk must be taken, because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing;
* The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing and is nothing;
* He may avoid suffering and sorrow, but he simply cannot learn, feel, change, grow, love and live;
* Chained by his certitudes, he is a slave and has forfeited freedom'
* Only a person who risks is free.

Risk taking is:
* Opening yourself to change. It is the accepting of the need for change and it is taking the behavioral steps that will result in that change.
* Honest appraisal of a situation in life requiring your action.
* Understanding the risks involved in taking such action.
* Weighing the pros and cons of taking the action.
* Making a choice to take the required action.
* Performing the action with full consciousness of the risks, pros and cons and potential outcome.
* Accepting the consequences of such action.
* The ability to ignore your need for other's approval in order to take the most appropriate action for you.
* The behavioral process involving the gamble that you may experience rejection from others for the actions you have chosen to take.
* Pursuing the required actions despite the fear that it will affect others negatively, resulting in their efforts to make you feel guilty about taking such action.
* Deciding to make a personal sacrifice of time, energy, ability and knowledge as an investment to better your circumstances.
* Hoping your circumstances will improve as a result of your personal sacrifice, but making it anyway.
* The effort to be honest with yourself about your part in interpersonal problems, admitting that you have certain personal barriers that prevent the resolution of the problem.
* Admitting to the other(s) involved what the barriers are and seeking assistance to address those barriers and resolve the problems.
* Committing to become objective in pursuing a rational approach to a problem.
* The willingness to identify irrational blocking beliefs, which hinder resolutions.
* Opening yourself to be identified as being too subjective, too emotional, too obstructing and too hindering in the resolution of your problem.
* The willingness to accept honest, objective feedback about the need for you to change your own behavior.
* The effort to be less subjective, less defensive and more open in your search for truth, honesty and sanity in resolving your problem.
* The willingness to take a healing, forgiving and forgetting attitude in pursuing the resolution of a conflict.
* Opening yourself to be vulnerable, to being taken advantage of by the other in the conflict situation.
* Demonstrating your trust in the other person's willingness to accept an honest, open and upfront approach to resolving the conflict.
* Now-oriented action.
* Direct confrontation of a problem. It is the absence of procrastination and denial in dealing with a problem.
* Responsible action taken to pursue the resolution of a problem.

What are some blocks to risk taking?
Road blocks to becoming a risk taker include:
* Fear of rejection
* Need for approval
* Need to avoid guilt
* Need to always be right
* Need to know all the "in's and out's'' of a situation
* Need for certainty
* Lack of belief in yourself and others
* Fear of being incompetent
* Desire to avoid conflict
* Unresolved anger
* Poor role modeling in family of origin
* Fear of failure
* Unwillingness to face problems honestly
* Lack of assertiveness in protection of your own rights
* Inability to take the responsibility for your own life
* Unwillingness to accept possible negative consequences
* Preferring to be unhappy, mired in your problem
* Playing it safe
* A need for security
* Fear of hurting others
* Rationalizing the lack of need for direct action
* Denial that a problem exists and that action needs to be taken
* Projecting the need for action onto others
* Intellectualizing about a problem to avoid action
* Exempting yourself of responsibility to resolve a problem
* Relying on others to resolve your problems
* Alcohol or drug abuse "clouding" thinking
* Over-emotional response to a problem
* Humoring yourself and others to ignore the problem
* Over concern for everybody but yourself
* Fear of pain ("no pain, no gain")
* Absence of desire to change
* Irrational belief that it is impossible to change the situation
* A disregard for the rights of yourself and others
* Confusion about your role in handling the problem
* Lack of ownership of the problem
* Over-sentimentality for the needs of others
* Enjoying the sympathy you receive from others for the problem you face
* Inability to let go of an old belief in a person or institution
* A belief that life should always be fair

Not being a risk taker results in:
* The problem or complaint going unresolved
* Change being avoided
* Maintenance of the status quo, even if it is negative
* Others turning off to your complaints and pleas for help
* No gains in life--stagnation
* Over-dependence on others to take care of you
* Unhappiness concerning your current status in life
* Depression over your problems
* Feelings of being stuck C immobilized
* A chronic "yes, but" attitude
* Lack of creativity in problem solving
* The problems becoming exacerbated
* Your rights and the rights of others being ignored
* Experiencing ``burnout'' in facing your problems
* Loss of support from others who have been assisting you in working on your problems
* Loss of physical health
* Loss of emotional health
* Being isolated and ignored by others as you wallow in self-pity
* Your blaming others for not helping to solve your problems
* Your self-destructive, self-defeating behavior

After reading through these lists, it gave me a better understanding of the benefits and downfalls of taking risks. As I was flipping through my journal this evening, why, I don’t exactly know, I looked at my first entry. My most recent journal was given to me by a friend when I moved to Italy back in 2006. He knew that I enjoyed writing in a journal, and it was the perfect travel size! As I read his inscription in the front, I had to laugh because it mentioned that he hoped it would be a great reminder of my adventures in Italy. If only I knew then what I know now! It truly is a reminder! I relate those first few entries in the journal to my journey of taking risks. I think back to the big decisions on what jobs to take, where to move, and what house to buy. As I was packing for a quick trip to Austin tomorrow, I pulled off a luggage tag from this past August – a reminder of my last “flying” adventure to meet an eHarmony man – what a risk that was! (What a memory that was as well!) I also feel that it was impart a risk to closing my account. I felt eHarmony was my way out of this town, but quitting it was a risk in truly relying on God and letting him take control. I guess letting God be in charge is not really a risk  but it has sure been an act of faith!

We take risks quite often – some that may affect that particular day, others that will affect the rest of our lives. As I continued to flip through my journal I found many entries where I pose an uneasiness on certain things – weighing the pros and cons – trying to see what I should or shouldn’t do. I always try to look at both sides, make a tangible list, and formulate my thoughts as best as I can. I sometimes ask for advice, and sometimes ignore everything that everybody has to say! Jordan and I were laughing the other day because I totally disregarded the advice she gave me – and was thankful I went ahead and “risked” it all! If I wouldn’t have, something would have dragged on for months, but I am so grateful that I took initiative. I don’t know if you call it being brave or naïve, but sometimes, you just have to go for it, even if there is a fear of being hurt. I hope to have no regrets in life and feel that regrets aren’t always a negative thing, but something to ponder upon.

I wish I could share with you what is going on in my mind right now, but I just can’t. I will remember to seek God in this though – he will let me know which direction I need to take. I hope you gained a bit more insight into the realm of “risk-taking,” and I say go for whatever you want, and make the most of it!

You Are God Alone

Weekends

Weekends seem to come so quickly now. I remember when I was in school it felt like the week dragged on and on, but now, as the days on my calander seem to be filling up, the weeks are flying by. What seemed like an even planned for the next has ended up coming much sooner. I have realized that the many weeks I was counting on to accomplish some things have quickly disappeared, leaving me with a never ending to-do list. I'm looking forward to August 16th though - it's the end of my "planned" calendar, but yet the 17th is the beginning of a new school year! LOL - maybe I should start looking forward to Thanksgiving Break!

This past weekend has flown by, just like the weeks past. Friday was gorgeous, so I thought I would take a walk/run out at the park. Things were going well, started with a brisk walk, moved on to jogging, and then quickly realized how out of shape I really was. I also realized that the park can be a scary place when you're by yourself! It also doesn't help when the memory of being left there as a child comes flooding back - but that's a story for another day! :)

So I came back from my walk/slight run, grabbed a steak out of mom's fridge (who was still out of town) and headed home for an early dinner. Jordan was gone for the evening, and I had a ton of classwork ahead of me, so I timed my tv watching, turned on my phone alarm just in case I dozed off, and would you believe that I remember looking at my clock at 7pm, and then didn't wake up until 9:30pm?! I soon realized that my alarm was still on vibrate from school! Plus, I had about missed calls and three phone messages - I was popular Friday night - too bad no one really calls during the week! After that, I knew nothing was going to be accomplished, so I drug myself from the couch back to my bedroom, turned the lights off, and got almost twelve hours of wonderful sleep! I spent Saturday morning at choir practice, followed by a few hours of classwork, a few hours of yard work (thanks dad for fixing my lawnmower) and then an enjoyable evening with friends.

This morning I woke up to another beautiful day, and it ended with an amazing concert at my church. Our "Holy Week" Concert went really well, and I was pleased to see so many of my family members there to hear us. It was a true blessing for me, and I thought I would share with you one of my favorite songs we sang. The recording here is from a high school choir, but you can at least hear the words.



The day has ended well. It's been another busy weekend, but I feel as though I've accomplished some things off of my to-do list. Summer will be here before we know it, so until then I plan on accomplishing all that God has put before me! I hope you have a blessed day.