Kindergarten, Calvary, & QU wedding!

School is winding down! :) I love my students so dearly & will cry when I have to say good-bye, but I am worn out. Trying to finish scrapbooks for them + end of year tests + teaching 1st grade skills to prepare them for next year = very tired, first year teacher.

I have prayed over a very important decision the past several months. I joined my church in Amory to help me become a part of this community I'm living & working in. I have taught preschool-Kindergarten choir, sung in the adult choir, & attended church regularly at this church. My pastor at Calvary, Bro. David, called me last Sunday to tell me he was praying for me & my decision... that it would be clear from God where I should be attending -- the place where I'm growing spiritually & socially.

That was God's answer... I am not growing as I should be at the new church. I feel lonely instead of feeling a part of the church. God's ministry for me has always been youth ministry... I've known this since 12th grade. I can't really do youth ministry here though without second guessing what other people could be saying about me. Questioning my integrity & rationale for working with youth, as a teacher in the schools. No one has ever said this aloud, but I can't help but to wonder if they're thinking it... maybe because I would think it? I don't know.... but I know my integrity & character was not questioned at Calvary. My purpose for working with youth ministry is to teach/minister, help the students see how they can live Godly lives as young people, & to encourage them when times get tough. I've been welcomed by so many dear people in this new town & church, but it still doesn't feel like coming home.

The past 3 weeks at Calvary, I have thoroughly enjoyed the drive to & from church (great thinking/praying time), the Sunday School lessons (Young Adult/Career Sunday School), the worship services, and being around those who love me & understand me. God is making his answer for me as bold & clear as a neon sign.

Friday was my class' Q&U wedding. It was so much fun! I didn't do it the traditional way... with one bride, one groom, & lots of wedding party. Every little girl was a bride, every little boy was a groom. Girls wore veils; boys wore Q bow-ties. They walked down an aisle with QU words all over it... written by two little girls in smocked dresses I was afraid to let go to PE. :) Their vows were to promise to follow each other at the beginning of words forever. Our reception was "homemade" cupcakes & Kool-aide. The kids in my class .... this kills me to even say it, but they have NEVER had real cupcakes. You know, the ones you make with cake mix that are so easy! I baked these cupcakes in literally 30 minutes, & as sweet Riley said, "She didn't even burn them!" On birthdays/parties, we get cupcakes, but they are store-bought (Wal-Mart) cupcakes... and trust me, I understand... it was tempting for me to just go buy those Thursday for the reception, but after I saw those kids devour the ENTIRE cupcakes (not just the frosting), I was a convert. Many said they had never had a cupcake so good, & sweet Reese told me to bring more Monday! :) Ask to see pictures from the wedding when you see me in person... they're in my purse, & the kids are darling! The owner of a ballet studio here in Amory, Sally, taught a manners lesson Friday, too. She taught the kids how to eat soup properly (with punch), how to introduce themselves to others, how to pay someone a compliment, & how to write a thank-you note. The kids wrote thank-you notes to their parents for letting them attend the Q&U wedding. Days like Friday make teaching Kindergarten SO much fun!!!