4th of July!

First off, I do not have a job.  I interviewed, but no luck.  Oh well... something good'll happen, right?  My resume and application are still floating around on the internet, so people still know I'm interested in their positions.  :)

Jay and I are trying to organize our lives and get rid of some clutter, but we're having a hard time of it--we're not hoarders, we just don't have much stuff that we see as useless.  It's a fine line, I'm sure, but I think we're still on the "sane" side of it.

Being the 4th, Jay's off today.  Know what we've done today?  Nothing!  We went to lunch, but we've spent today playing computer games (The Sim 3 for me, and Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 for Jay!), emptying the dishwasher, and watching movies on Blu Ray and NetFlix.  Huzzah!

It's still light out, so we're still not doing anything.  Eventually it'll get dark, and we'll turn our eyes skyward and look for fireworks.  Hope you're enjoying the holiday as much as we are.  :D

- Christine & Jay

Busybusybusy

I was told that I don't update enough.  I thought that my activities don't really merit an update, that they're not really that interesting, but really, "that's the point."  So here it is.

Today, I went to Six Flags for the second time this year; I have a season pass and paid parking all season--if you want to go some time, I want to go with you!  It's one of the few non-wedding-related thing I've done in a little while.  Last week was a marathon of wedding events, and tomorrow starts up another set of wedding-related events (I'm a bridesmaid in two weddings this summer!).  I know: you think I'm just throwing around words here and using "marathon" as an exaggeration, but I promise I'm not: I went to a bachelorette party, then to get our nails done, then a rehearsal and rehearsal dinner, then a bridal luncheon, and then the wedding for one bride; Sunday, we (yep, Jay came with me!) woke up and went to bridal shower for this week's wedding.  Yesterday I donated platelets, today I went to Six Flags with Nick and Mojo (it was hot, but we had a really great time!!), tomorrow I'm going to a bachelorette party, then Thursday is a rehearsal and dinner, and Friday is the wedding.  I'm just go go go, but that's alright--I'm unemployed, what else am I up to, right?

I've also worked on a few crafts in the meantime.  I've made fabric flower brooches, fabric "mums" for bridal showers, and continued working on a quilt for my sister's baby.  My mom's friend is getting married, so I've also helped her make a bouquet of metal brooches--it's kind of a pain in the butt, but it's going to look really awesome when it's done!

Jay found out why one of our tropical plants looked so sad and wilted: the roots were completely disconnected from the topside of the plant.  We had two plants in one container that had no draining hole, so he thought maybe they were drowning; when he moved the plants into a container that drains, he found out the sad news about the roots.  But at least now we know why it looked so sad, and our surviving plant can drain excess water.  The mint on the back porch seems to be doing well, as does the other planter of flowers from one of my girl scouts... even though the flowers got knocked over in last night's storm.  Some friendly person in our complex found it on the ground and put it back on our fence rail.  :)

Jay also helped my dad, my uncle, and James build a fence last weekend (the weekend before the wedding).  It took them two full days of working, but the fence in my parents' back yard looks a million times better than the original fence looked when it looked its best.  Oh.  Jeff came over in time to help with the last five minutes of working on the fence.  (We call him Blister--always showing up when the work's done.  tee hee.)

Tonight is actually Jeff's birthday (Jeff is my sister's husband, btw), so we're about to head out and have a celebratory dinner with him and the family.  :)

Hope you've enjoyed the post!

Traveling, Y'all

Jay and I recently returned home from a super fun trip to San Antonio!  We had our first opportunity to take our new Honda Insight (it's super sweet!) on a longish (I've driven to many places that took more than five hours of car travel, so anything less than that isn't really a "long" trip in my book) trip.  Around town, we get 45 or so mgp, sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less.  (Yesterday, I got 60 mpg on my trip from the Magic Time Machine (a restaurant) to our home!  WOO!)  On our way to San Antonio, we did not fare as well.  I think our average for the tank we took down there was only like 39 mpg, and the way back was closer to 45.  And when it's windy out, boy does the Insight get blown about the road.  All-in-all, though, it's a pretty quiet ride and it's smooth, and the navigation system and iPod playing system and Bluetooth connection and hands-free everything and the climate control is pretty freaking awesome!

Okay.  Enough about the car.  Onto the trip!

One cool sculpture spotted on the trip--cow made of fenders!

Squinty eyes!

Gazelle!

Since we didn't have an agenda to keep, we kind of took our sweet time in arriving, and made some off-course side trips.  On the way, we saw some cool sculptures, took a squinty-eyed picture, and we saw a whole field/herd/ranch of gazelles (side note: they didn't budge an inch when we drove past them at upwards of 65 mph.  When I did an impromptu  u-turn in the middle of the road and circled around to pull off onto the side of the road to take pictures, the critters went nuts and started running away; it was very strange that they were afraid of us approaching slowly and not afraid of us whizzing by). All of that happened on the way to our first destination before San Antonio: The Salt Lick Bar-B-Que.  What, you don't know what The Salt Lick Bar-B-Que is?  Well.  It's a delicious barbeque place in, essentially, the middle of nowhere that Jay saw on some show--Man vs. Food? maybe?--and heard of  otherwise, so we headed there from Coppell.  I'm not generally a big fan of bbq, but this place had it going on.  I'd probably drive there again if Jay ever wanted to on a weekend.  Or whatever.

It's in the process of being relocated, thus, construction.

After we ate a delicious lunch (completed with dessert!), we set our course to a different side destination: Stonehenge II!!  Okay.  You've probably never heard of Stonehenge II, and you probably think I'm making it up.  But guess what: I'm not!  It's real!  It exists!!  I first learned of it when reading the book Yes Man by Danny Wallace--the movie is loosely based off the book, but it's set in England and is a real story (or as real as any memoir goes).  Either way, the book is hilarious, and you should definitely read it some time; it's completely not the story of the movie and it is HILARIOUS--I read it during silent reading when I was student teaching, and sometimes it made me laugh out loud, which earned me crazy looks from the 8th graders.

Workers asked me to hold this while they took a break.

But back to the point!  I learned about Stonehenge II in the book, and I immediately said, "What?  Stonehenge II?  This guy's crazy."  So I googled it, and found out that it's a real place.  Of course, I had to see it for my self.  So when Jay and I began planning a San Antonio trip, I asked if we could visit, and he was also intrigued.  Voila!  Stonehenge II!


While we were at the Stonehenge II site, we also saw something else from another place and time... but you'll have to go there on your own to find out what!  (Or look through Jay's facebook photo album.)


After that exciting stop, we headed to San Antonio to our swanky hotel room suite.  Jay booked us at The Hotel Contessa, and it was beautiful.  There was some fragrance they used in the lobby that I didn't care for, but it wasn't used anywhere else, so I was alright with that. While we were there, we even went swimming on the rooftop swimming pool.  It's pretty weird/awesome to swim on the top of a building.

Of course, we visited the Alamo.  What trip to San Antonio is complete without a stop at the historic site of a lost battle?  The first time we went there it was closed, but that made it easier for us to get a picture of the two of us without random people in the background.

Yeah.  That guy is just hand feeding sting rays.  No big deal.

We also took a trip to Sea World.  If you're looking for rides, Sea World is not for you.  If you're looking to learn some stuff about ocean creatures and see some pretty awesome shows featuring sea mammals, then Sea World is definitely for you.  I took a bunch of pictures there of the shows, mostly because I kept trying to get the shot where a whale or dolphin or whatever is mid-flip.  I'd certainly recommend it.  And if you're a teacher, you can sign up for something or other to get in free.  And if you're an active or retired or reserve military person, you can get in free, as well.  I don't know that it's worth joining the armed services just for free admission, but you have to weigh that for yourself--who am I to decide what is important or right for you?  ;)

Baby whale!  (Which is called a calf.)

Did you know that San Antonio is only a few hours (fewer than two, actually) away from Shiner, Texas?  Jay and I know.  And we went there.  We got to tour the brewery for free, and we got to sample four brews, also for free.  The tour doesn't last very long, but it's pretty interesting.  And we got to see Shiner being canned, not bottled, and that doesn't happen very often, so we felt pretty special.  It's amazing how machines and assembly lines work.  Jay and I probably could have stayed at the brewery and watched the bottling/canning all day, but the Shiner people probably wouldn't have appreciated it.


Of course, we spent a bunch of time walking around San Antonio.  We ate both on and off the River Walk, went through La Villita and looked at all the artsy stuff, and we walked to El Mercado for dinner and to look at the shops there, as well.

We decided that the heat and humidity in San Antonio is more intense than we care for, but we had a really great time.  We enjoyed spending time together and seeing the fun stuff we got to see.  Plus, we missed the crazy hail storm that happened in the DFW area while we were on vacation, so that was an added bonus.  We're already talking about our next trip, but we're not quite positive where it'll be. 

:)

p.s.  No word on the job front yet (I know you're curious), but my resume and application are out there.

Big News, Everyone!

First off, I'M OFFICIALLY A GRADUATE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS!!  I graduated on Friday, May 13, 2011, and it was a pretty painless event.  It only took about two hours (only?  is that really the appropriate word? i say so.), and I wore converse with my cap and gown (I did wear a dress, though--I wasn't completely casual), so I was comfortable and didn't trip walking up the steps, while on stage, or walking down the steps.  It's a fabulous feeling to be completely done with my undergradate degree.  Maybe grad school is in my future, but not my immediate future--I just want a break before I dive back into school.  (Thanks to Erin Costa for taking and posting this picture of me!!!)

So now I'm waiting for my diploma to arrive.  And for the state of Texas to finish its process to grant me my teaching certificate--yes, I passed all four of my certification exams!  Once the paperwork is done, I'll be certified to teach any subject for early childhood (think pre-k) through sixth grade.  But my major and my specific certification is 4-8th grade English, language arts and reading.  Ideally, I'll get a job teaching language arts in a middle school classroom, but I'll be more than willing to accept any position I'm offered!

I've been using my time since I completed student teaching to make some money in my field.  Yep, I'm substitute teaching.  I'm only working in the Irving ISD, but I'm perfectly happy to be here.  I've worked at the same school I student taught at most of the days I've subbed, and I'm really enjoying it.  I like seeing the familiar faces, and some of those faces like seeing me, too.  :p  (Oh well, you can't have everyone like you, right?)

Right now (well... not right now, of course) I'm working on a few crafting projects, and I'm finding that I really enjoy it.  All the projects I've begun involve a sewing machine in some way or another, and I haven't completed them yet, but they're getting there!  Once they've been completed, I'd love to post pictures for you, my adoring fans.  ;)

Until later,
me

Inching Closer

Three of my four certification tests are complete--and I passed all of them.  My next--and last!--on is schedule for May 3rd.  Once that one is done (and passed, of course), I'll be certified to teach Early Childhood-6th Grade (any and all subjects); 4th-8th Grade English, language arts, and reading; and/or ESL classes.  Hooray!

I went to a career fair not too long ago, and most districts say they won't know if they're hiring until June or July, so that's kind of lame.  But that gives me plenty of time to look for a great job, right?  Plus, our lease isn't up until after July, so if we have to move, it'll be at about the right time for that.  See?  Gotta find the silver lining!

This upcoming week (April 25-29) is my last week of student teaching.  I have mixed emotions about this.  I'm happy that I'm that much closer to FINALLY graduating, but I'm going to miss seeing the teachers and administrators, and even the students.  And because this is an 8th grade TAKS week, I won't even get to see most of my students on my last day.  I'll have to tell them all on Monday that I'm leaving on Friday, and then they'll have weird schedules Tuesday-Friday, and it's going to be kind of sad.  But I'm going to go back to the school for the 8th Grade Awards Ceremony in May, and I'll get to see my students--and they'll all be dressed up and hoping to get an award for outstanding attitude, performance, behavior, etc.  That's going to be a fun day.  :)

Also, I sent out graduation announcements today!  It was exciting!  I sent out far fewer announcements than I sent out wedding invitations, but it had that kind of a feel to it--something I've been working to for a long time and that I'm excited to see come to actualization.  If you're interested in coming and did not receive an announcement, here's the scoop on graduation (actually, this is exactly what the announcement says):

The President, The Faculty

and

The Graduating Class

of

The University of North Texas

College of Education

Announce the Graduation of

Christine Gregson Shive

on

Friday, the Thirteenth of May

Two Thousand Eleven

with a

Bachelor of Science Degree in

Education

Summa Cum Laude

Commencement Ceremonies will be held at

The University of North Texas Coliseum at 7:00 p.m.

Of course, the announcement's font is fancier and blah blah blah, but it says those exact words.  And yes, you read correctly: I'm graduating Summa Cum Laude.  Because I'm a genius.  And a humble one at that.  ;)

So, things are starting to come together.  Inching closer to the end, one day at a time. 

No excuse, but at least I'm finally updating?

General public and dedicated (ha!) readers, it's been over two months since my last real update.  Hmm.  That feels too much like the beginning of a confessional.

Anyway, it has been an absurdly long time since last I told the world what's been going on in the Shive house.

February: I'm a little fuzzy on the details, but I know that February included Valentine's Day.  I had a girl scout meeting that night, and we had a bunch of fun.  I baked a couple dozen heart-shaped cupcakes and bought frosting and sprinkles and candies, and the girls and I decorated and ate the treats, then we played games.  We had to wait until we'd covered the official business first, but that didn't take much time at all--it was party night!

When I got home, Jay was just finishing up dinner.  He made us a delicious fondue that we dipped bread, apples, and tiny sausages in.  For dessert, we had strawberries, apples, bananas, and pound cake in a dark chocolate fondue.  SUuuuuuUper good.

Jay and I started watching Dexter on NetFlix.  It's dark, but interesting and I like it.  So does Jay.  We're actually watching it right now!

Of course, I can't forget about Snow-pocalypse!  Or Ice-pocalypse, if you prefer.  That was five unexpected days off school.  And five days when I read waaayyyy too many craft blogs.  But I love them!  And I live vicariously through their crafts, which is good because we don't have room for me to put the crafts I'd make or anywhere to make the crafts.

Um... that's all I remember of February.

March: We have plants!  Yeah!  Jay and I finally went out and bought a metal table, a green bamboo planter, and two leafy and brightly colored plants.  They're super cute.  And they brighten up the whole patio.

My sister's wedding is coming up on Saturday, so that's a big deal.  We're all working to make it as nice as possible, especially with the highly restricted timeline.  It's going well, and I think it's going to be beautiful.

Also, I took my certification exams!  I passed two of them for sure, but I'm still waiting on the results of my third test.  I feel pretty confident that I did well, but I won't know for certain until they post my results.  And let me tell you: this is a difficult wait.

So.  I think you're all caught up with some of the important stuff.  :)

Need To Update

Need to find something to update about first, though.