I TURNED IN MY THESIS TODAY!
Defense day is scheduled for May 7 at 2:30. I met my goal...I wanted to have it done by the end of April, and today is the 31st!
In other news, the dinning room table is clean :>) and Dave and I have tons to look forward to this summer. Here's our fun things broken down by months:
May: I'm done with school. Mom and Dad Norvell are coming at the end of the month. So is my sister.
June: The Norvell is having a family Canton day! My sister will be here for the first part of the month. Birthday's for both Dave and I, and my friend Lauren is coming in town for a wedding/visit.
July: 4TH OF JULY IN PHILLY!
August: Mike and Rachel will be here for a wedding/visit. We are hoping to take a trip to Arkansas to visit Mom and Dad Norvell, and there may be a trip to College Station for me to visit Lauren.
Not to mention: Prince Caspian, Sex and the City Movie, Iron Man, The Dark Knight, and others that I know I am forgetting.
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Peter Cottontail and his little posse of rabbits lives in the creeky area behind our house, we have discovered. How did we make this discovery, you may ask??
A few days ago I was in the office putting the final touches on my thesis prospectus, when I heard a whining coming from the kitchen. I thought to myself..."the dogs got to go, but I have to finish this thought or I will lose it". You see, this was the morning after a huge batch of storms rolled through the metroplex, and so when Dexter had to go out, I had to wait for him to finish so I could wipe all the mud off his paws. So, I sat there for probably 5 minutes more finishing my paragraph, listening to him whine. A few times I even said..."just a minute, buddy"...as if he could understand me. When I finally got up to go let him out, he started whining even louder. He stood on his back legs and started pawing at the door to get out. This was strange...the first time he had ever really been that eager to get outside. I looked out the back door window, and low and behold, sitting right next to our grill like it owned the place was Peter Cottontail. A few feet away sat his buddy. Now Dexter, a Jack Russell Terrier, was originally bred to hunt rabbits way back when, so I have to assume that some of that is still in his blood. I opened the door as quietly as I could, and Dexter took off, faster then I had ever seen him run, towards to bunnies. They, of course, were faster, so they snuck away under the fence before Dexter was even off the porch. Ever since then, however, he stares out the back windows and back door waiting for them to come back. They have a few times....mostly in the mornings, and the scene above plays out again. A few days ago he got kinda close to getting one...he was right on his tail. He used to sleep all day in his bed. Now he sits and patiently waits for them to dare step foot onto his grassy back yard. One of these days, he'll show them whose boss.
A few days ago I was in the office putting the final touches on my thesis prospectus, when I heard a whining coming from the kitchen. I thought to myself..."the dogs got to go, but I have to finish this thought or I will lose it". You see, this was the morning after a huge batch of storms rolled through the metroplex, and so when Dexter had to go out, I had to wait for him to finish so I could wipe all the mud off his paws. So, I sat there for probably 5 minutes more finishing my paragraph, listening to him whine. A few times I even said..."just a minute, buddy"...as if he could understand me. When I finally got up to go let him out, he started whining even louder. He stood on his back legs and started pawing at the door to get out. This was strange...the first time he had ever really been that eager to get outside. I looked out the back door window, and low and behold, sitting right next to our grill like it owned the place was Peter Cottontail. A few feet away sat his buddy. Now Dexter, a Jack Russell Terrier, was originally bred to hunt rabbits way back when, so I have to assume that some of that is still in his blood. I opened the door as quietly as I could, and Dexter took off, faster then I had ever seen him run, towards to bunnies. They, of course, were faster, so they snuck away under the fence before Dexter was even off the porch. Ever since then, however, he stares out the back windows and back door waiting for them to come back. They have a few times....mostly in the mornings, and the scene above plays out again. A few days ago he got kinda close to getting one...he was right on his tail. He used to sleep all day in his bed. Now he sits and patiently waits for them to dare step foot onto his grassy back yard. One of these days, he'll show them whose boss.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
This just in....
Sources have discovered that not a full week since buying the gorgeous dining room table (see picture in previous post), David, beloved teacher and husband to Karen awoke to discover a terrible outbreak of thesis paperwork.
The CDC has been notified and crews are working around the clock to dispose of the mess. We will take every opportunity to keep the public up to date on developments. We hope to see a happy ending here, though. To all who are reading, good night and good luck.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
This year's tax return went a looooong way. We were very blessed with a large return this year, and we had so many places we wanted to put it and decisions to make. Should we put it towards the car, my student loans, toward a house down payment, our retirement fund? So many ideas. So all in all, here is what we decided. Deciding that we needed to think smart....abut a third went into savings for various things. The rest helped us get some necessities and some fun things as well. Such as......
Two tickets to Philadelphia to visit Mike and Rachel for the Fourth of July (with a little help via an early birthday check from my mom)!
A much needed 30,000 mile checkup on our car plus new tires
And to fill our vacant dining room, this amazing table we found on Craig's list (for only $400!) It is in pristine condition and goes with the rest of our house beautifully. Thanksgiving at the Norvell's next year!
Two tickets to Philadelphia to visit Mike and Rachel for the Fourth of July (with a little help via an early birthday check from my mom)!
A much needed 30,000 mile checkup on our car plus new tires
And to fill our vacant dining room, this amazing table we found on Craig's list (for only $400!) It is in pristine condition and goes with the rest of our house beautifully. Thanksgiving at the Norvell's next year!Now, we still have a little left....we are still trying to make a decision about that. The Corolla really needs some work to keep it moving for a few more years, but I keep seeing great sale advertisements on TV at some of my favorite stores!
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Just a few things
Not too much has happened since our last update. Life is on a pretty steady track here in Grapevine. This past weekend we had some of Dave's friends stay with us. They were in town for a youth ministry conference at the seminary. It was nice to have some overnight guests, but I am ready for a weekend with no commitments. On Saturday we went looking around for dining room tables, courtesy of the tax return. We went to several places, not finding too much. This weekend we'll check out a few more. Hopefully by months end we can have a little dinner party on our new table.
Dave is administering the TAKS math test (TX standardized test for students) today. It's a big deal for him, since he mainly teaches math and science. He admitted to me this past weekend that he was burnt out on this group of students. Apparently, they just don't have the kind of drive or motivation to succeed that many of them need. He is concerned that several of them won't pass the test, which could ultimatley lead to them not passing fifth grade and making him look like he didn't do a good job teaching this year. In a few weeks, the TAKS science test comes, and then after that is a bunch of field trips, fun end of year projects, and then summer. He needs a nice break.
I am shooting to finish and defend my thesis prospectus by the last week of April. I have received some good feedback from my proff, and hopefully I can buckle down and get the last few parts written. I am looking forward to this summer when all I will have to do is data collection, and I can give the research and writting a rest for a while. My plan is to finish completely before Thanksgiving next fall. That will give me plenty to be thankful for.
On a different note, our pastor gave an wonderful, thought provoking, and couragous sermon on church discipline this past week. I have been thinking about it often since then. He talked about balance in the church, and while it may seem unfair, not everyone will be treated the same way when it comes to church discipline. He talked about balance, which made me think about balance in all areas of our lives. It was strong, supported, and really hit home.
I have been struggling alot lately with making "good choices" in my life, mainly with my health and what I eat. I have the exercise part down cold. I really do enjoy exercising, and lately have been doing so twice a day....a good hour at the gym in the morning, and a power walk with Dexter in the evening. But, with all that exercise, I can't seem to make the same good choices with what I eat. I always gave the excuse that "life happens and I just can't control it". For example, this past week at work I didn't get a break, so my meal became two big ole pieces of cheese pizza and a cranberry scone I snagged from the deli :>). When I stop at the gas station, I have a bad habit now of going in and grabbing a candy bar for the ride home. I always chocked up these decisions to my inability to control that particular situation. So that got me thinking....if so many situations arise that I can't control, what stopping me from making good decisions in the situations that I can? For example, I eat lunch at home most days. There is no reason for me not to eat a healthy,balanced and nutritious meal for both breakfast and lunch. I have never been blessed with the metabolism that will just burn off all the calories I eat simply by blinking, so my food choices matter significantly. So I have a new resolve. Not to diet, not to count calories or carbohydrates, but simply this: When I have the ability to be in control of what I eat, to pick and choose the foods that I will intake, I am going to make the best decisions possible, no excuses. Couple this with the good exercise I am getting, and hopefully I can continue to lead a healthy lifestyle for a long time.
Dave is administering the TAKS math test (TX standardized test for students) today. It's a big deal for him, since he mainly teaches math and science. He admitted to me this past weekend that he was burnt out on this group of students. Apparently, they just don't have the kind of drive or motivation to succeed that many of them need. He is concerned that several of them won't pass the test, which could ultimatley lead to them not passing fifth grade and making him look like he didn't do a good job teaching this year. In a few weeks, the TAKS science test comes, and then after that is a bunch of field trips, fun end of year projects, and then summer. He needs a nice break.
I am shooting to finish and defend my thesis prospectus by the last week of April. I have received some good feedback from my proff, and hopefully I can buckle down and get the last few parts written. I am looking forward to this summer when all I will have to do is data collection, and I can give the research and writting a rest for a while. My plan is to finish completely before Thanksgiving next fall. That will give me plenty to be thankful for.
On a different note, our pastor gave an wonderful, thought provoking, and couragous sermon on church discipline this past week. I have been thinking about it often since then. He talked about balance in the church, and while it may seem unfair, not everyone will be treated the same way when it comes to church discipline. He talked about balance, which made me think about balance in all areas of our lives. It was strong, supported, and really hit home.
I have been struggling alot lately with making "good choices" in my life, mainly with my health and what I eat. I have the exercise part down cold. I really do enjoy exercising, and lately have been doing so twice a day....a good hour at the gym in the morning, and a power walk with Dexter in the evening. But, with all that exercise, I can't seem to make the same good choices with what I eat. I always gave the excuse that "life happens and I just can't control it". For example, this past week at work I didn't get a break, so my meal became two big ole pieces of cheese pizza and a cranberry scone I snagged from the deli :>). When I stop at the gas station, I have a bad habit now of going in and grabbing a candy bar for the ride home. I always chocked up these decisions to my inability to control that particular situation. So that got me thinking....if so many situations arise that I can't control, what stopping me from making good decisions in the situations that I can? For example, I eat lunch at home most days. There is no reason for me not to eat a healthy,balanced and nutritious meal for both breakfast and lunch. I have never been blessed with the metabolism that will just burn off all the calories I eat simply by blinking, so my food choices matter significantly. So I have a new resolve. Not to diet, not to count calories or carbohydrates, but simply this: When I have the ability to be in control of what I eat, to pick and choose the foods that I will intake, I am going to make the best decisions possible, no excuses. Couple this with the good exercise I am getting, and hopefully I can continue to lead a healthy lifestyle for a long time.
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