Eunoia

Last night as I lay in bed, I was half dreading half naively hopeful for today. Because I knew it would be a long day of teaching, parent conferences, tutoring, making lesson plans, and cleaning my paper clad desk (which I haven't done by the way).

But it turned out to be a really good day. Teaching wise, the kids were engaged and I was showered with gifts today, including a random act of kindness from a parent I didn't even know!
How funny it is that when I need encouragement the most, God sends it.

So even as I left school at 7:11 today getting ready for a conference tomorrow, writing lessons, and setting up all my science materials for tomorrow, I was actually happy. I am so thankful that God allowed me to see the little things today and count those as blessings. Because I rarely do that, especially when I am on high stress mode.

That's my eunoia for today. :)

2014 - A fresh start

I am writing this (or rather typing) at the first minute of the new year. In my pjs. No hardy partying for this girl. I feel so old.

So about this time, I usually come up with 5 resolutions for the year. Some are easier to keep than others.
I know some people don't like to make them, because there is no follow through most of the time. I think you need a plan of action to go with your resolutions, or it just won't work.

I have so many things I want to improve on. Exercise more, spend less, volunteer my time, read more, grade those dreaded stacks of papers! But I'm afraid I won't follow through.

So this year I won't make a list of resolutions. Instead, I want to focus on how I do things. How I will live this year. I saw a challenge on Instagram where you come up with one little word (#olw) that will define the year. There were so many to choose from: engage, simplify, love, give, create.
After some thought, I chose:

Become. A verb that means, "begin to be." Grow to be or turn into.
Synonyms: grow, come to be, change into, be transformed into, [be] more

I was listening to a sermon a while back from Alistair Begg (great pastor by the way) and it was about our standing with God. Something he said really caught my attention. He said, "Become what you are."
Not who people want you to be, or who you think you should be, but who you were created to be.

He said:

"It's not impossible to mess up, it's just incongruous. Tomorrow's a new day, a fresh start. 

Life is a journey with a series of new beginnings." 

So this is my fresh start. I want to strive every day. Even if one day I yell in my road rage at a terrible driver. Or spend the afternoon napping instead of grading. Or eating yet another handful of salt & vinegar chips. I don't want to give up when I mess up. I hope to take more opportunities this year and enjoy the little things.

I am excited about 2014. :)

Waiting place

I am blogging from a local car dealership waiting for my car alignment.

I hate waiting. It seems so pointless. It's one thing if you know there's a certainty it's going to happen. What if you're not sure? What if you wait and wait and it never happens? What then?

There are a lot of potential by-products of waiting. It builds patience. Perseverance. If you're waiting for something good, the reward is that much more joyous. If you're waiting for the not so good, it provides relief, albeit bad. Closure.

2013 was a waiting year for me, so it was frustrating to say the least.  But maybe I've gotten some benefits from all this waiting. Patience. The strength to keep moving and preparation for what I hope for.

So if you are in that waiting place, like Dr. Seuss says, "Somehow you'll escape, all that waiting and staying." 

And: And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9

That's my food for thought today. :)

—————


I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Every year I am more and more thankful to spend time with my family. My favorite part was watching everyone open their presents.

I got so many ornaments this year, I'm going to have to buy a mini Christmas tree for my apt!
What's a good/cheap place?

Oh, I forgot to announce the winner of the blog wishes giveaway! The winner was Arriana C.!
Congratulations! :) Your gift is waiting for you.

So I have to list my favorite gift from Christmas, which is very difficult.
My favorite homemade gift was from a former strudent's mom: her special made cookies/chocolates. They are hands down, the best. My favorite bought gift is from my mom, a grey/white polka dot bath robe from, you guessed it, anthropologie! Of course, every anthro gift (all ten!) were my fav!

Anyway, I'll be thinking about my New Year Resolutions and post those soon.
Thank goodness for this break. :)

Blog Wishes 2013

What a perfect day! It's Friday and I am in my pjs, looking out at snow topped roofs and nearly silent roads.

Texas rarely gets snow days and this really puts me in the mood for Christmas.
Last year I started my blog wishes giveaway. I've always loved Christmas because it's a time where I can slow down and really think about the year. It's family time and catching up with friends time.

These past few months have been a little crazy. Okay, stressful. I feel like I've been going nonstop and this unexpected day off is forcing me to stop, look up, and see where I am. In some ways, I don't like it. But now I know what I need to do and what my goals are. So thank you God, for this break!

My blog giveaway starts this Saturday and ends December 18th at midnight. For every entry I receive, I will double that number and donate the dollar amount, half to the charity of the winner's choice, and half to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.

Okay, so about the giveaway! Here are the rules:

1. You need to enter through Rafflecopter below. You can receive up to 7 entries for the giveaway.

• 1 entry for commenting on this post with your name, link to your item, email, and blog site (this is mandatory).
• 1 entry for blogging about my giveaway. Please email me at madebyfirenze@gmail.com with your blog      entry about my blog giveaway including a link to my blog.
• 1 entry for liking  my blog page on Facebook (MadeByFirenze)
• 2 entries if you follow me on GFC! If you already do, I will make sure you get 2 entries. :)
• 1 entry for Tweeting about the giveaway. I wanted to do Pinterest, but that wasn't available for me. If you  don't have Twitter, you can follow me on pinterest (minjoo) and pin my blog giveaway photo above and receive 1 entry.
• 1 entry for following me on Instagram. Either like or share my blog wishes photo on Instagram for 1 entry.

I am raising the stakes this year! Your Christmas wish can be up to $100!!!

Now for your item:

• Choose one item on your Christmas list you would like. It cannot be a gift card, or 2 items. Only one.
• The item must be less than $100. No exceptions. Any items over $100 will be disregarded.
• It must also be something that can easily be bought online. No rare items or ebay items.
• It should be from legitimate sites like amazon, Anthropologie, J.Crew, or Target etc. If I have any concerns with your item, I will let you know.
• If your item requires a size or color, please specify in your comment.
• If item is sold out, another Christmas item of your choice (<$100) can be chosen.

Please follow the Rafflecopter entry rules. Any false entries will be taken out.
I will contact the winner through email within 48 hours after the giveaway ends.
Good luck and have fun choosing your item!

Here are a few of my Christmas picks this year:

1. J.Crew - Crystal Rosette Bracelet $115.00

2. ASOS - Midi Skirt in Plaid Check $65

3. Rifle Paper Co. - Citrus Floral Tin Recipe Box $34

4. Anthropologie - Eustella Ombre Infinity Scarf $38

5. BoonLook - Honeybadger Eyeglasses $99

I couldn't resist buying number 3 already. It just reminded me of the 90's. I love it!

Anyway, I can't wait to see your picks!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Coming soon: Blog Wishes pt. 2

I know it has been a while since I've written. It has been very hectic at work and I can't seem to find the time to blog. That being said, I want to try to make more of an effort to blog more; especially since Christmas is around the corner (my favorite time of year).

Last Christmas I started something called blog wishes. It was my first blog giveaway and I loved doing it. I want to try to do this every Christmas so that it becomes a tradition. :-)

Please check back and I will post about the giveaway soon after Thanksgiving. In the meantime, what would you like for Christmas this year?

Aggie for a day

Okay, I promise this is my last post today. I need to stop procrastinating with my blog.
I wanted to write about my Aggieland experience. It has been too long since my last 30 things at 30 checklist, and unfortunately, I need to change my list to 30 things at 30 something.
So here is my twenty-sixth thing:

26. Go to a college football game 9-7-13

Caitlin invited me to go to an Aggie game with her since Ryan couldn't go. Plus she knew from my list that I have never been to a college football game (let alone a NFL game). I was actually pretty excited and a bit apprehensive. Excited because sports are much more fun and exciting if you go see it and apprehensive because I didn't know what to expect and so many people around me were just looking at me like, "Oh, just wait and see."

Anyway, we started our mini road trip to College Station that Saturday morning.

The weather was great! (in the morning...)

On our way, we went through Waco and Caitlin stopped so I could see the real (!) bears at Baylor! Who knew! Apparently everyone except me! Even my student knew there were bears there.

I wish I had gone here...

Then we were on the road again to College Station! Caitlin pointed out a famous barn that decorates on every game day:

And then it started:

Flags everywhere.

Customized SEC car.

And customized TOMs

I had to be use my paparazzi skills to take this pic because Caitlin loved it so much. We stopped by a tent sale of shirts and another shop and I bought 2 shirts and 1 long sleeve shirt. I go one day and I'm already into Aggie gear.

 Before the game, we went to eat at Potato Shack! I finally got to try it! My mouth is watering just thinking of it...

 Potato, cheese, buffalo chicken, and ranch? How can you say no to that?

We also stopped by a cute shop before heading to the campus:

 Love these stairs..

And walked on the famous bottle caps...

 

Finally we arrived.

As we walked around the campus and in the student memorial building, I began to see why people gave me those knowing looks. It is a different world. Almost everyone I saw was wearing an Aggie shirt. It was a sea of maroon. I knew I was still in Texas, but it didn't feel like Texas. 

The Century Tree

We waited inside before the game and met a nice older couple. And I mention the 'older' part because they kept mentioning a nice Chinese and sometimes Vietnamese boy named Kenny that was in the Color Guard.
And apparently I must be Filipino because of my yellow hair (or maybe it was yellow skin?). Well, I was not offended but wow, I have not been called Oriental since I was like 7. Caitlin kept apologizing on their behalf which was hilarious.

Before the game

The stadium is pretty freakin' awesome. 

Front row!!! How cool is that? :)

BTHO Sam Houston State!

And then my phone died. It's like Harry Potter all over again. Luckily Caitlin had her camera to take pictures during the game. Check it out here: Life and Love in Wonderland.

 Reflection:

This was definitely an interesting experience. I never had a true college experience because I went to UTD. I didn't have school pride or school spirit, never joined any clubs or integrated into the student body. I just commuted to school and used the library to study. Sometimes.

Being at A&M and even seeing the Baylor campus has a different feel. I got to experience what it would have been like to go to a college game, cheer for my team, and have that sense of comradery. It sounds a bit silly, but I felt like that at the game. I definitely want my future kid to have that true college experience.

My favorite part of the day was yelling the cheers (even though I had no idea what I was doing), seeing the yell leaders, seeing the band perform, and actually getting excited when they were playing well. If you know anything about me, I do not get excited for football.
The rain was unexpected but it was actually preferable to the heat. I'd rather get rained on than sweat. I joked that I was the only Asian there and we kept trying to find Kenny. I think we found him. 3 times.

Anyway, I'm so glad I got to experience what it's like to be an Aggie. Thank you Caitlin for taking me and to Ryan for those awesome seats. I still don't care for football, but at least now I don't hate it. And if I have to root for a team, it would have to be the Fighting Farmers! :)


It's a little chilly today. I think I'll wear my Aggie shirt.

:)

TMI midnight showing

So I spent most of the last part of my summer reading TMI. I was obsessed. I read those books back to back. I didn't sleep. I sometimes forgot to eat (which is surprising for me). And when I heard they were making the CoB movie, I fell in with the fandom and did fan girl things like looking up the actors, watching endless videos, interviews, clips, and reading articles on movie news, entering sweepstakes, pinning countless photos, collecting memorabilia, crafting, and on and on and on. The movie got SO much hype, and I was counting down the days until the midnight showing.

I was so excited, I took a picture of the poster!

 Tickets!

 Diy Toms!

Took a screen shot when it was time!

Well, I was disappointed. I hate to say that because it was a fun experience but the movie just did not do justice to the book which really stinks because it is such a great series. The movie was just too cheesy and trivial.

There were some good things: Robbie who plays Simon was great; he literally is Simon. Lily Collins IS Clary. Looks-wise Jamie CB IS Jace (he was a bit awkward in some parts, and for me, too serious at times). I'm not so sure about Isabelle though. Jemima is a great actress and I love her, but I don't know if she fits that role. Isabelle should be more lighthearted and vulnerable. She was too grave in the first film.

The bad: The CGI was terrible. The Midnight Flower scene which should have been epic, was so cheesy! I heard the director didn't want to rely on CGI too heavily and had them physically do the fight scenes. Why couldn't they do that for the flowers?! Like a time lapse video or something? And there was just too much changed from the book. I understand if little details must be changed, but don't put totally new and random scenes in there! Ugh. And Valentine with dreads?! He's supposed to have WHITE HAIR. At least give him normal brown or black hair. He is not Jamaican, people.

The funny: We met some cool 16 year old girls while we were sitting in line (and talked about the film, book, Dr. Who, Harry Potter, etc.). I felt SO old, but it was fun. They were like, "Omgosh! You guys are the coolest teachers!" Haha

I hope this doesn't sound like a rant post. I so badly wanted this movie to be good and I still support all the actors, director, etc. and of course the book series. It just didn't live up to my expectations.

Anyway, all that being said, I really hope the second film gets better. I'm not sure what happened to CoB. Something just wasn't right. It wasn't authentic enough. I didn't like the script. I really think that makes or breaks a movie. Someone please take over. And give Cassandra Clare more power over that. Because if they decide to go in the same direction, I'm afraid this movie series is going to tank.