Pardon the dust...

So, I have most definitely fallen off the blogging bandwagon. Sorry, folks. Life just sort of has a way of taking control. So in true, Kelly fashion, we're going with a list today. I do love my lists...just ask my husband.

1. We're so, ridiculously close to the end of the school year, without it actually being the end of the school year. We're all getting a little trunky - and the deceptively, gorgeous spring-like weather we've been having as of late, is most definitely not helping with that.

2. Scott and I have been married for four months - that seems a little crazy for several reasons. It feels like we've been married for much longer than that, but then occasionally something will come up that reminds us that we're still figuring this whole being married thing out. There have been some bumps and bruises along the way, and we definitely don't have all the answers, but being married is awesome!

3. I am officially teaching 11th grade IB/Honors English next year. The IB Program is somewhat similar to AP classes in that it is an accelerated, rigorous program, but that's about where the similarities end. I did AP when I was in high school, so I'm excited to learn about the program and take on a new challenge. It also doesn't hurt that I get to go to Seattle for a weekend in March for training. I also "get" to go to Texas next October for the second training series. I'll still be teaching regular 11th grade English and I'm pretty happy about it all. The transition to the high school hasn't been smooth sailing...far from it, in fact...but next year is definitely looking up.

4. Scott's mom is coming to help take care of the children of some friends while the parents are out of town. She'll be here for about a week and we'll get to spend some time with her. It seems a little odd that we haven't met yet, but unfortunately circumstances just haven't aligned for us. It'll be a crazy week for me with school responsibilities and such, but I'm very excited to finally met her!

5.  Also not helping with the feeling trunky is the trips we've started planning this summer. I am most definitely ready for summer to be here and to go have fun! Scott's family lives in Washington State near Portland and we're going to visit for the 4th of July. He proposed to me on the 4th of July at a lake near his parent's house, and our first date of sorts was to Cannon Beach. I'm beyond excited to go back and visit where this all started for us. He'll also get to show me around a bit more than he did last time we were there. We're also going to do a long weekend to Denver and possibly go to Cedar City for the Shakespeare Festival. That last one is a bit of a long shot, but it would still be loads of fun.

6. In our effort to keep a to a better budget, I've been doing quite a bit more cooking than I have done in the past. It was definitely hit and miss at first. Turns out I didn't really eat meals before I was married. I'd have a big lunch at school and then just sort of snack my way through the evening. We're starting to round out our meal rotation. I just need to give a shout out to whoever the genius is/was that invented the crockpot. We have two and they are in constant use. I've also started to freeze meals. It sort of makes me feel all grown up - funny considering I'll be 31 in a few months and I've been on my own for about a decade, but there you have it. I may start sharing some of the recipes we've done that we love...because dang...they're yummy and super easy. Most have 3-4 ingredients that you probably already have in your cupboard.

7. One of my most favorite things about Scott (and there are many) is that he enjoys reading. We've read books together. That was actually one of the things that first made me fall in love with him. The last one we finished was Unbroken. This weekend we started the first book in The Codex Alera series by Jim Butcher. It's definitely not something that I would have picked up on my own. It's sort of ancient-Romanesque fantasy adventure...? I don't know how to describe it, but it pulled me in within a few chapters. It's been fun to share different books with him and I can definitely see this continuing when we have children.

8. Valentine's Day was this weekend and it was low key. We went to Ihop and a movie. That may sound strange, but Ihop was our first date - of sorts. It was that or Buffalo Wild Wings and we decided to go for Ihop. I hope that becomes a tradition of sorts. We talked about the day we finally met face to face and what was going through our heads and just how far we've come. Like I said before, being married is pretty awesome.